


Blood and Black Roses

by Hades_queen_13



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: (not for long though), F/M, M/M, mortalNico, past LukexPercy, vampirePercy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-18
Updated: 2015-04-18
Packaged: 2018-03-24 15:58:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 19
Words: 51,754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3774733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hades_queen_13/pseuds/Hades_queen_13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nico was used to being sought after. He'd been cornered more than enough times in his life. But he never thought this would happen to him. Vampires weren't real. They were just a myth. And the man who'd saved his life certainly wasn't a vampire. Nope.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. And The Story Begins

**Author's Note:**

> I don't even know how this happened. It just popped into my head and wouldn't go away. So I have to put my other story on hold for now and put this out. Bare with me here people.

A breath was gasped in and seven pairs of blood red eyes turned to the pale body in the middle of the room. "See?" Annabeth said smugly. "I told you he was special." Percy scoffed. "Don't be smug Wise Girl."  
A heartbeat and a sigh. Percy could hardly contain himself. He could hear his consort's blood becoming more like his. He shivered when he felt the warmth spread through his body as his consort's body became the same temperature as his. He walked quietly to the bedside and gently poked the side of his consort's ribs. He leaned in and whispered gently. "Hey. It's time to wake up. I've waited long enough." Then he sat back and watched in fascination as 2 blood red eyes flashed open to look at him. _____________________________________________________________ About 3 Months Earlier \-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nico di Angelo sighed as the wind blew in his face. This was the life. He took in a deep breath and let the smell of the turf grass permeate his nose. He shifted his weight and let his mind go clear. Which was easier said than done considering the amount of cheers he could hear from the sidelines. "Let's go Nico!" His sister yelled enthusiastically as she hopped up and down like a rabbit. Nico would've been angry. But Hazel was a good sister even if she did have a bad habit of being overly excited about things. Nico gave her a rare small smile and leaned forward to take the shot. A penalty kick. Easy. He watched as the goalie fidgeted while he waited for the whistle to blow. This kid was obviously new. He'd played this team before and the goalie had been different last time so this one must've been a substitute. Which meant he was nervous about failing. Nico knew the feeling. He almost decided to go easy on the poor guy. Then he saw the score. 13 to 13. A tie. Well he couldn't just let that stay that way could he? This game had to have a winner and Nico didn't feel like going into overtime like last game. No. It was better to end it now and get it over with. He nodded at the referee and waited for the shrill cry of the whistle. When it sounded, he brought his foot forward letting it crash into the ball and watching it sail to the goal. He watched as the ball made contact with the net and watched as the goalie looked crestfallen. And he listened as the whistle blew again signaling that not only was the goal good but that the game was over. He sighed, letting the tension of the day sag his holders as relief washed over him. He'd done it. They'd won. Any other day and he would've felt terrible despite the victory. After all he had just stolen the other team's chance of making it to the finals. But today he was elated. Not because he'd made the winning goal no. He was happy because all his hard work would finally pay off. With luck his father would hear about this and be proud instead of brushing him off like cake crumbs. Nico shook his hair out of its ponytail just as the rest of the team got to him. Then came the group hug. He was squished between a bunch of sweaty bodies and his eardrums could've busted from all the loud cheering they were subjected to. Any other day Nico would've told them to back the hell up and give him some room to breathe. But today he allowed it. After all it wasn't everyday he got this lucky. The next hug he was wrapped in was from Hazel. She'd run all the way from the bleachers and had nearly tackled him to the ground. Nico smiled as she laughed and breathed in her scent. She smelt like cinnamon and a bunch of other things that shouldn't have gone together but did. Then the hug got a little tight. "Hazel." Nico groaned. "Sis. I have ribs you know. And you're crushing them a little." His sister flinched back and released him, her eyes still a little wild when she smiles at him. "Sorry." She said meekly. Nico shrugged and grabbed his water bottle off the ground. "Ready to go?" Hazel asked as she rifled through her purse for her car keys. Nico nodded and rolled his shoulder as he walked off the field. "Geez. You have quite the grip." He mock complained as he rubbed his sore muscle. Hazel clicked her tongue. "That's not even where I hugged you. That injury is from when you slide tackled that kid for the ball." "I got it didn't I?"

The drive home was hectic to say the least. Westmore High School was located in the middle of the city which made traffic a bitch. Good thing his sister drove like a mad man. To anyone else the weaving in and out of traffic would seem nerve wracking and terrifying. But to Nico it was comforting. He liked speed. If it went fast he loved it. That love had gotten him in a lot of trouble over the years though. From the time in 7th grade when he tried to charm a guy for his Ferrari to just 2 weeks ago when he had almost agreed to go out with the school's biggest jerk just because he had a motorcycle. (It was a nice one though.) Hazel saw Nico's love of speed as a nuisance. (Since she was usually the one helping him get out of the trouble it caused.) Nico saw that love as making mistakes and learning from them.  
His sister's voice brought his head out of the clouds and he blinked. "What?" Hazel smiled fondly. "You didn't hear a word I said did you?" "Nope." Hazel sighed and shook her head before she cut off a guy in a white sedan, earning herself a lot of cuss words and a finger.  
"I said, I can't pick you up tomorrow because I have band practice. So be extra careful on your way home okay?" "Why?" Hazel frowned. "Didn't you hear it on the news last night? 3 more dead bodies were found in Dead man's Creek on Tuesday. But apparently the bodies were so mutilated and covered in bite marks that they didn't know who the kids were. All the police knew was that all the bodies were male. And your age." Nico frowned as well. "It is called Dead man's Creek for a reason. And who would want the blood of a few mouthy 16 year olds on their hands? That's just weird." "I know which is why I'm telling you to be careful. The last 2 they found they knew. Hunter and Gregory Thomas. They went to your school." Nico tried to remember a Hunter and Gregory. Faintly, the image of 2 fair looking blonde boys (one with blue eyes the other with green) being in some of his classes. The blue eyed one- Gregory. He had art with him. And the green eyed one- Hunter. He had math, language arts and science with him. Nico had thought that their sudden vacancy of school was due to illness. Now that the real cause had been revealed it made Nico's stomach twist like a pretzel. Someone was murdering boys at his school. What if he was next? The thought left his head as fast as it came. He was safe. There was no reason to worry. Besides. Who would want to kidnap him? He hadn't done anything to hurt anybody and he was pretty much normal. He would be okay. He reassured his sister and rod the rest of the way home in silence. Nico didn't get out when Hazel pulled into their driveway. Hazel grabbed his shoulder and looked him in the eyes. "What's wrong?" He asked. Hazel's stare intensified. "When we get inside, don't start anything." Nico would have frowned. But he knew what his sister was talking about. He and his father had a bad habit of arguing. A lot. About any and everything. If it could be argued about they argued about it. Usually Nico started it. But on rare occasions his father instigated a fight, it usually ended bad. Nico furrowed his eyebrows. "I can't make any promises. You know how he is." Hazel made a skeptical face. "Fine." Nico huffed. "I'll try alright?" Hazel nodded and they walked to the front door. Everything went smoothly until dinner. Nico stayed in his room pretending to do his homework whenever his father walked past his room. He refused to socialize with anyone until dinner. He even tried to get out of dinner. Anything to avoid another argument. Of course it didn't work. The minute he sat down his stepmother Persephone started the conversation. "So." She said as she handed him a bowl of mashed potatoes. "I heard around the grapevine that you scored the winning goal at today's big game." Nico nodded. "I did." He said around the piece of chicken in his mouth, earning a little kick in the shin from Hazel for the bad manners. "Penalty kick at the last second. It's nothing to brag about though. The opposing team's goalie was new so it wasn't all that fair." "But you're in the finals now right?" Nico nodded again. "Yep. Just us and Eastern Bay High." Persephone beamed as if she didn't have enough words to describe how proud she was. She glanced up at Nico's father and faked a cough. "Hades." She said pointedly. "Don't you have something to say?" Hades glanced up from his meal, eyes flickering to Nico for a second before he spoke. "I am proud of you scoring the winning goal son. Good job." The words sounded so cliché coming from his mouth. As if he had to rehearse them just to say it. But nonetheless Nico was happy. And he would've stayed that way had his father stopped talking after that first sentence. Of course, as Nico's luck would have it, Hades would keep talking. "What I am not proud of is your grades. To be frank I'm surprised they let you play today since you have a D- in English." Nico almost choked on his potatoes. He did vaguely remember getting his report card back and hiding it once he saw his English grade. He didn't think that would come back to bite him in the ass though. Not this soon. "How is it that you have such a low grade in a class for the language you speak?" Hades asked. "If I speak the language, why do I need the class in the first place?" "Because your generation is so caught up in technology that you've become illiterate beyond comprehension." Nico scoffed completely ignoring his sister's warning glare. "Our generation? Well at least our generation is willing to compromise. All yours does is criticize and gripe about everything." Nico flinched when he felt a sharp pain in his shin signaling that Hazel had kicked him hard under the table. But he wasn't backing down. He'd said he would do his best not to start trouble. And he had. This fight hadn't been started by him. All his dad had to do was say he was proud and move on. He didn't start this fight but he would finish it if he had to. "I criticize you because I don't want you to make the same mistakes I did growing up." Hades said. Nico frowned. "Mistakes? What mistakes? The way I hear from everyone you were perfect. The poster child of America almost. Or is that my mistake? Not being a perfect child. Not living up to my last name and being a sweet little angel." He knew he was blowing this way out of proportion. All he had to do was let it go. Be the bigger man. But that was just it. He wasn't a man. He was 16. He was supposed to blow thing out of proportion. To make a big deal out of everything. He was sick of being level headed like his dad. "I don't want you to be perfect I just want you to be-" "Like you?" Nico said and he could see the restraint his father was using to not say yes. Hades sighed. "I just want you to grow up and be responsible for once." Nico could have sworn his eye twitched. He didn't know what happened. What snapped. But suddenly he was holding back laughter. "Responsible? For once? All I've ever been is responsible Dad. When you had to work and Hazel hurt herself on the stairs when we were little, who patched up the wound and gave her a kiss on the forehead cause you weren't there to do it? Me. When you almost completely forgot how to cook because you'd been working all the time, who showed you how to not screw up macaroni? Me. Even your marriage. If it wasn't for me acting sweet and innocent to buy time for you to get ready because you'd gotten home from work late, you might be never gone on that date with Persephone and she probably wouldn't be here. I've been nothing but responsible and level headed all my life. For once I want to be and irresponsible, irrational, idiotic teenager. For once I want to not have all this weight on my shoulders trying to make you happy. For once I want to do stupid things for no reason. I want to make mistakes without you breathing down my neck all day. I'll grow up later but for now I'm done." He stood up and threw Hazel a 'I'm sorry' glance before he excused himself and walked to the door. He had his jacket and shoes on before he heard Hades behind him. "And where do you think you're going?" Nico caught Hazel's golden eyes as she came around the corner. She nodded and her golden eyes conveyed a message that only Nico could put together. 'Be safe.' He sent her an almost nonexistent nod before he flung the door open and growled at his father. "Out! To be irrational and stupid for a while! And maybe cool off. Did that alright with you father?" He didn't wait for an answer before he slammed the door behind him as he stomped out.


	2. First Scent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy stalks Nico basically.

Percy could smell him from a mile away.  
Then again he could smell anything from a mile away so this was being a little vague. But the fragrance of this one was damn near intoxicating. Like an earthy smell mixed with undertones of sweetness.  
He remembered his first hunger. Right after he'd been changed and he'd caught a whiff of his first human. He didn't remember what happened before everything went red but after, he remembered waking up with his clothes covered in blood and a full stomach. The desire to follow this kid and pounce on him was like that first hunger. Deep and resonating throughout his whole being, threatening to take him over completely. But this version was more controlled. Percy could think, could refuse to give in to temptation and just walk away. Well. For a while at least. He stayed away as long as his body would allow. He didn't think about it, didn't talk about it. And eventually he stopped breathing all together because he could survive without doing so and that heavenly scent was practically calling his name. After a few hours of not thinking, breathing or speaking, Percy risked a whiff of air and was relieved to find it smelled normal. He continued the rest of his day peacefully.

Around an hour after sunset, Percy smelled it again. That sweet aroma. And it was close. Smothering him in its wonderful vanilla fragrance and leaving him dazed and higher than a fucking cloud. Finally he gave in. Screw it  
There was no harm in being curious right? Besides. He'd conquered worse things than this. If he could manage to not go on a rampage in a crowded street full of drunk on St. Patrick’s Day then he could do this. Okay so the only reason he hadn't gorged himself that day was because Annabeth had dragged him away from the parade and wouldn't let him go until he was behaving. But he s still counted that as a victory so he followed.

His original intention was just to find out who it was. Male or female. Young or old. Attractive or not. Then go home. But when he saw him, that plan went to the dogs. Fuck everything. How was someone that good looking even humanly possible? (Key word humanly because vampires don't smell like that in any way possible.) Annabeth had told him about 'sirens'. A human who's blood smells so irresistible to a vampire that they'll do anything to have it. She'd said that not only was the blood hard to resist, so was the appearance of the human in general. Percy had never really understood that. 

Until now.

He watched as the boy drop kicked the shit out of a rock and watched it fly. He had to be in high school. He had longish midnight black hair that was pulled into a ponytail that looked impossible to tame. He was wearing a jersey that appeared to be for soccer. His skin was a healthy olive color. Even from the distance he was away from the boy he could see the beads of sweat on his neck. Speaking of neck. That goddamned smell was back. Throwing his already enhanced senses into an intense overdrive that he didn't want to get rid of. His body felt sluggish the way it did when we he was wasted. But he had a feeling he wouldn't be left with a hangover this time. He followed the boy as closely as he could without being branded as a stalker- though that was exactly what he was doing. He walked among the human crowds of people without a care in the world. There was no burn in his throat like there usually was when he was near this many people. And his brain wasn't trying to coerce him into going psychotic and killing them all like it usually was. He was completely focused on the boy in front of him. He never lost track of him and whenever the kid looked back Percy made himself a part of the crowd. He followed until he saw the boy arguing with a big guy in front of a closed door. Percy could hear the thrum c of the music as the bass got deeper. He could hear glasses clinking as they were set down on counters and could hear the gulps the humans took when they drank whatever was in the glasses. A club. The kid was having a pretty deep conversation with the guy who appeared to be the bouncer. "Come on Frank. Just this one time. Then you won't see me here until my 21st birthday. Please?" He begged. The bouncer, Frank, shook his head. "No way man. Your sister would kill me and you. I just got this job and I'm not about to lose it because I let in a 16 year old." He hissed the last 3 words. "What if you get molested? And why would you want to come to a place like this anyway? Won't your dad be ticked?" The boy rolled his black eyes. "My father and I are no longer on speaking terms as of now." "What you do this time?" The boy scoffed. "He said he wanted me to be responsible for once. I'm nothing but responsible. Most of the time. He doesn't want me to be responsible he wants me to be like him. Well I'm not gonna be like him and I want to show him that he can't control me." Frank frowned. "And you really think that this is the best way to do that?" The boy looked away. "Maybe not he best way bot the only one I can think of at the moment so that's the one I'm going with now please Frank. Please?" Frank sighed. "If I let you in will you behave?" "Absolutely." Another sigh and Frank pinched the bridge of his nose. Then he opened the door and stepped aside. "Your sister's gonna kill me if she finds out." He frowned at the boy. "I'll let you in this one time. But I mean it Nico. No messing around. I have to come in to check on everyone every once in a while to make sure no one's getting raped or robbed in there. And if I see you at that bar or taking to anyone who looks even the slightest bit suspicious, I'm kicking you out. Alright?" The boy -Nico shrugged and mock saluted. "Sir yes sir. I'll be good. Besides I don't even drink." Then he disappeared through the door. Percy followed only to be stopped by Frank the bouncer. "I need your ID man. Or else I can't let you in." Percy nodded in distraction, a little glad he'd decided to bring his ID with him this time. Usually when he went to a club he didn't have to show ID. The clubs he went to were owned by vampires and to get in you had to simply flash your red eyes. But human clubs were different. You had to have documents. Legal stuff. Ugh. He pulled out his wallet and flashed the ID before the door opened. He almost hissed at the intensity of the music when he stepped inside. His hearing was super enhanced and the bass was doing horrors to his ears. But he followed through. He weaved his way through the throng of buzzed, sweaty bodies, honing in on that sweet aroma until he saw that untamed ponytail. The boy was glancing around the poorly lighted room. His eyes seemed to be moving everywhere all at once. Taking in everything at the same time. He kept bumping into people and stumbling as if he was an infant just learning to walk. Was it wrong that Percy found that strangely endearing? He avoided the bodies that tried to pull him in to the beat and shook off the advances to get him drunk. He was drunk enough. He lost track of the kid for a few seconds when a plate of something was carried by him, overloading his nose. When he was finally able to smell again he realized that he'd lost the scent completely. He silently cursed himself for getting distracted and started to march off when he heard it. Laughter. And not drunken laughter or a giggle but a real laugh. A beautiful joyous laugh that made him stop in his tracks. In a flash that smell came back to him. He almost blacked out at the suddenness of it and just barely caught himself. He walked slowly like he was in trance and nearly growled when he saw the boy again. He was dancing in front of some drunken idiot. Percy could smell the alcohol leeching from his skin, making him sick. He frowned when the sweet smell was mixed with the rancid alcohol. That didn't go together at all. Then he really focused on the kid and nearly burst into giggles himself. This kid looked so out of place. His hips were moving but not in the sultry way that Percy had hopelessly imagined him doing. With the hands on his hips moving him the way they wanted he couldn't move at all. Percy clicked his tongue. What an amateur. He stepped forward and taped the guy on the shoulder. He turned and Percy caught a whiff of what he'd really been drinking. "What? Can't you see were dancing here?" Percy sneered. "You call that dancing? Cause I'd call it humping without all the pleasure." The man growled and Percy did the same, letting his true nature 'slip' for a fracture of a second. He felt his eyes turning and then turning back. "I suggest you take a break." He said putting just a hint of hypnotism in his voice. The man backed away, quickly nodding his head. The boy had turned around by now away and was staring at him. "May I have this dance?" He purred and the boy obliged. Percy could have laughed at how bad this kid was at dancing. He have thought that teenagers were good at seduction. He was at that age. But the dark haired boy in front of him was horrible at this. When Percy chuckled at his failure the boy's hips jerked a little more and Percy had to chuckle again. "You're doing it all wrong." He said. He set his hands on the boy's hips and felt him jerk and his hear bet stutter a little bit. "Well maybe you should show me." The boy spoke back, voice even though his heartbeat resembled a car engine. "Well." Percy began, pressing his hands on the hips that were way to curvy for his own good. He leaned in to whisper in the boy's ear. (Just to get that heartbeat leaping again.) "You have to feel the beat. Don't try to hard or you look like a little kid. No offense." He felt that pulse go crazy for a second then the boy squeaked. "None taken. But I'm not a good dancer." Percy grinned slyly. "Then what are you doing now?" The boy looked down to his hips where Percy's hands were only resting not guiding like they had been for the last few minutes. His hips were rolling instead of jerking. They were moving smoothly as if he'd been doing it all his life. "Huh." He said crisply. "What do ya know?" Percy smiled down at him. "See? You're a natural. Just keep dancing." The boy obliged and Percy hyper focused on the sensation of having hips rolling against him. It was so weird. It'd been a long time since he'd had a partner to do this with. But now that the sensation was here he couldn't help the growl that escaped his mouth. His hips moved on his own too, grinding against the body in front of him. He bent his head to the throat that had damn near been presented to him and took a deep breath to get the full effect. And there it was. Here came the high. He took another deep breath and moaned a little. He wanted nothing more than to sink his teeth into that flesh and bleed the boy dry. Even one drop would suffice. Just one little taste was all he wanted. But just as he went to do such an act, his stomach lurched painfully. He let go of the boy and grabbed at it. 'Bad timing tummy' He thought. "Are you okay?" The boy asked. Percy nodded and quickly faked a recovery. "I just remembered that I have to do something. I'm sorry." The boy nodded and let Percy take a few steps before he grabbed at his hand. Percy jumped back at the sudden burst of warmth that spread through his body at the touch. He felt his resolve wavering. "What's your name?" Percy's eyes widened. His name? Why would he ask that? Percy frowned. "My...name?" "Yeah." The boy said over the music. "My name is Nico di Angelo. What's yours?" What was his name? He wasn't sure. All he knew was that he was so thirsty. His throat started to burn like a wildfire and he gulped in attempt to put out the flame. "Percy Jackson." He said in a moment of mental clarity. Then he walks briskly out the door.


	3. Knight in Bloody Armor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico gets saved. Literally

Nico really wished he hadn't turned when that guy had told him to. Then he wouldn't be in this situation. With his back against a wall and a gun to his face. The guys that were holding him there had nasty smirks on their faces that Nico would've loved to smack off if that gun wasn't there. But as there was indeed a real live gun pointed at him, he had no choice but to stay still, and look pretty like he'd been instructed. (That pretty comment had pissed him off a little.) He tried to remember how the hell he'd even gotten here. Then it all came back to him.

 

Nico had been in the middle of dancing to a Selena Gomez song when Frank had scared the McShizzle out of him.  
He jumped and whirled around so fast he was surprised he didn't get whiplash. When he saw a frowning Frank Zhang he took a deep breath and calmed down. "Damn Frank. You scared me shitless. Could you not use your weird ninja skills to do that?" Frank gave a lopsided smile flow apology before he cleared his throat. "I think you should go." Nico frowned. "Go? I just got here." "Nico. It's 3 am. You've been here for 5 hours." Nico blinked a few times before that clicked. 5 hours? He snatched his phone out of his pocket and clicked it on. Sure enough, above the selfie that Hazel had taken and set as his lock screen were 3 numbers that made Nico's stomach sink.  
3:19 am.  
"What the fuck?" He hissed, ignoring the way that Frank flinched when the cuss word flew out. How had time passed so fast? He could recount the first hour. He'd spent that hour in the park walking around aimlessly. And during the second he'd been dancing with that guy. But what about the rest of the time? What had he done during the remaining 3 hours? Had time really slipped that fast? He ran his hand through his hair. His dad was gonna kill him. Then his mouth turned sour. His dad. He'd stormed out after an argument that shouldn't even have started. Sure his father had started it but he'd made it worse by retaliating. He'd promised Hazel that he'd knock it off, that he'd keep cool and not start trouble. Add that to the long list of promises he'd broken. "I should go." He said. Frank nodded and wished him luck. But he knew he'd need more than luck to fix this mess. Maybe some magic. Or some godly interference. He trudged down the darkened streets making sure to stay safe. At least he'd be able to keep one promise. He listened closely for any sounds. He pulled his jacket closer to his body. With the soccer season coming to an end, the weather was getting colder by the day. He really should have brought a bigger jacket but with his head on the fritz he couldn't think straight. He rubbed his hands together and blew on them, relishing in the temporary warmth it brought. "Hey. Kid." Nico froze and peered into a darkened alley. If he tried hard enough he could see a silhouettes and a pair of eyes staring at him. "You got any money?" Nico blinked. Did he have any money? He didn't want to risk taking out his wallet to check but if he thought about it he could remember having a few bills. "Kid. Didn't you hear me? I said do ya have any money." Nico didn't get to respond. Instead he was knocked to the ground. He felt his face hit the ground and groaned as the weight settled on his body. "Get the hell off me!" He screamed as he thrashed. "Cmon Ryan. Get him up. We don't have all day. The boss will love a little toy like this." The voice on the alley said. Nico took in all he could as he was dragged into the darkness. The voice sounded male. Late twenties early thirties. And he had a name as well. One of them was named Ryan. Maybe he could use that. He shuffled and felt the wind leave him as he was thrown against a wall. The alley was suddenly lit up as one of the men flicked on a lighter. The man in the middle was just as Nico imagined him. Early thirties by the looks of it with short dirty blonde hair and a vicious sneer. The 2 in the back looked like twins. They both had poison green eyes and ruffled hair the color of a robin's feather. "What do you want?" Nico hissed. The man in front laughed loudly before he snatched a gun from his jacket and held it steady in front of Nico's face. "You know kid it's not very polite to not answer someone when they ask you a question. In fact it's considered rather rude." Nico scowled. "What. Do. You. Want?" He clipped. The 2 men in the back laughed as well. "What do you think Evan? He'll be a nice addition to the boss's collection don't you think?" "Yeah. The boss is gonna love draining him dry. God I can smell him from here." One of them took a deep breath and moaned. "Ah. So sweet smelling. Why can't we just take a bite? Just one little bite to ease the tension." The one in front -who Nico assumed was Evan, snarled. "Shut it you two. You know the deal. We get meals for the boss and when he's done we get the entrails and leftovers. We don't touch him until the boss is full and sated. So get your head on the game idiots." Game? What the hell were they talking about? Boss? Bite? What kind of people bit other humans? Were they cannibals or something? Nico growled. "I'm not gonna ask again. What do you want with me?" Evan sneered again. "Well that's simple. We're gonna take you to our boss so he can have his way with you. We're gonna make sure no one knows who you are when we're done with you." "Boss huh? And have his way with me? I know I'm gay but I'm not a fucking prostitute." Evan smiled. "Oh. This has nothing to do with sex little boy. Our boss is different." His eyes went from their icy blue to a bloody sanguine. "So very different." Nico flinched. "What- what are you?" Evan smiled again and Nico was sure he saw fangs. Stark white and sharp. "You'll find out soon enough." "I'm afraid he won't." Another voice spoke darkly. "You won't be laying a finger on this young man. So I suggest you leave. Evan Dawson." Nico noticed the way the men in front of him flinched and seemed jittery. He heard the 2 in the back mutter. "Don't tell me it's him." "It can't be. Why would he be here now of all times?" Nico looked up to where the voice had come from to see a pair of shiny sea green eyes. The person dropped from the roof and placed his body right in front of Nico's. He glanced back to look at him. "Nico was it?" Nico nodded blankly. He could swear he knew this guy. But his mind was too jumbled to put 2 and 2 together. What were those guys? Why were they're eyes red? Evan growled at the other 2 assailants. "Don't be ridiculous. He can't do anything. The boss will still get his meal. All we have to do is get rid of this guy." "But. Evan don't you know who this guy is?" "No. Should I?" "Evan. Remember that guy that killed half of our old coven because he couldn't control himself?" "Yeah. So?" "That's him." Evan's eyes widened. Nico frowned. This guy had killed people? He certainly looked like he could. With the green eyes that were slowly morphing to a blood red and the fangs that shone in the light of the lighter as he growled. "I hate to think a meal but this one belongs to me." That snapped Nico out of it. "Excuse me for interrupting whatever this is but I don't belong to anyone. I'm not a slave." The guy in front of him turned and smiled. "Not yet. But you will be. Soon." Nico didn't like the way that sounded. It was time to make an exit. He bolted around the 2 lackeys and made a V line for the street. Only to be yanked back by his collar and have something sharp stab into his throat. He screamed and writhed, trying to get rid of the searing pain spreading through his upper body. He felt something get sucked out of him and screamed louder. The sharp things only.pressed harder. Nico heard a growl and then the pain wasn't as bad. Slowly fading away. He reached up to feel at his neck and nearly sobbed at the sight of his hand when he pulled it away. Blood. Another growl and a smash. Nico glanced back and wished he didn't . The green eyed boy was smashing one of Nico's assailant's head into the brick wall while he kicked another in the face. But there was one more problem. Evan was staring at him unscathed and vicious. His mouth was bloody and he was smiling, revealing red teeth and 2 sharp fangs. He stepped forward and Nico scooted back. "I'm sorry to do this. The boss is gonna kill me for getting a taste before he does. But in my defense, you taste amazing." "What are you?" Nico yelled. Evan smiled wide. "Don't you know the myths boy? The fangs? The blood drinking? I'm a vam-" Evan didn't get to say much else before the green eyed boy grabbed him by the hair and threw him to the ground. The sound of concrete cracking and then breaking completely made Nico flinch. Evan fought back clawing at whatever he could get his hands on but it was no use. He went still and nothing else was said. Then those eyes turned to him. Nico's breath hitched and his stomach twisted in fear. His body was moving before he knew what he was doing. His feet moving as fast as he could make them, his mind going even faster. 'No way. No way. No way!' He screamed in his head. "Help me!" He screamed out loud. He ran until his legs hurt and kept running until he ran until something hard. He fell on his back and winced as the wound on his neck throbbed. He looked up and flinched back at the sea green eyes before him. "Running won't do you any good. You'll only make your blood flow faster and you'll bleed out. You need some assistance." Nico shook his head and tried to stand. His brain felt fuzzy and breathing was getting harder. "I don't- I don't need any help. I just need to get home." "Not until I make sure you're okay." Nico shook his head again and blinked hard as his vision went black for a second. "No!" "Nico." Nico looked up. "How do you know my name?" "You told me. I'm the guy you danced with at the club. The one who had to leave so suddenly. My name is Percy Jackson. I'm a vampire." Nico felt like the world was tumbling out from under him. He barely had a second to look surprised before his vision went dark. When Nico woke up the first thing he realized was the lack of pain on his neck. It still throbbed a little when he touched it but there was no blood. Where was he? Why had he blacked out? Who was the guy pacing a hole in the floor in front of him? "Excuse me. Who are you?" The boy whipped around and sea green locked with midnight black. "You're okay." The boy said. "Oh thank God. I thought that bite had killed you." Bite? What bite? Then the events from before came back to him and he was up. "You're a vampire? You're telling me that I danced with a vampire? And those guys who attacked me were vampires too? Is that what you're telling me?" He growled. The boy nodded. "You remember. That's good. Do you remember my name?" "Percy." Nico said reluctantly. The boy- Percy- nodded. "That's right." Nico shook his head. "What- why- how am I still alive? And what about those guys?" "Dead." Nico blinked. "Dead as in you killed them. As in they're no longer a part of this world? " Percy nodded and Nico gulped. "You killed them?" "They attacked you. I had to get rid of them didn't I?" Nico shook his head and scowled. "You could have done it without killing them don't you think? " "I saved your life." "And you committed 2 cases of murder. Are you insane?" "I was for a few minutes." Nico blinked again, speechless. "What?" "You smell really good you know that?" Percy said happily, not even bothering to give Nico an answer. "Like vanilla and cinnamon and a bunch of other good stuff. To be honest I'm not sure how you're still alive with all the vamps in this city." Nico paled. "You mean there are more of you?" Percy nodded then frowned. "Of course. You didn't think it was just me and those guys did you?" "A guy can dream." "Yeah." Percy said almost proudly. "There are plenty of us. The cities, countries. All over the world. You probably know some vampires and don't even know it. Pretty cool huh?" Nico just stared. "I don't believe it. I just got my ass saved from blood sucking vampires. But another vampire." "Yeah your luck seems to be pretty bad huh?" Percy said. "But on the bright side, you are safe. No one can get you in here. I promise." Nico froze. "Where are we exactly?" Percy shrugged. "My mansion." "Mansion?" Percy smiled. "Yep. Mansion. When you're immortal , you have a lot of time to make money and save up for stuff. But of course I'm not the only one who lives here. All my friends, any vampire who doesn't have a home in this city is welcome to stay here. Kind of like an orphanage. But for vamps." Suddenly, there was a loud bang and a shriek of "Perseus Jackson!" Percy flinched and the voice persisted. "Percy if you don't get out here and calm this crowd down I'm coming in there and dragging you out. By. Your. Hair." "Not the hair!" Percy said as he moved over to open the door. In stumbled a pretty looking girl with brown hair and brown eyes. There was a feather in her braided hair and fury in her eyes. "Annabeth and I have been down there trying to keep those kids at bay and where have you been? Getting laid by some- some-" Then she stopped and sniffed the air. "Human?" "Piper. It's not what you think. I only brought him here to keep him from Luke. His goons came after him and I saved him and brought him here. Nothing more." Percy explained. "Did you drink his blood?" Piper asked. "Does liking the blood off his wound count as drinking it?" "Yes Percy. It does." "Then yes. I drank his blood. Why?" Piper shook her head in disbelief. "Nevermind. I can't tell you while he's here. Annabeth and I will do our best to get the rest calmed down. You get him home. Now." Percy nodded and the door was slammed. Percy turned. "Well. Let's get you home." Nico stood in front of his door, knowing that he should knock but not wanting to. What would his sister say? And Persephone? And his father. Oh God he was so grounded. There was no way he'd ever me able to step out of the house without asking. Hell he might even have to ask to do anything in the house too. "What's wrong?" Percy asked standing behind Nico on the sidewalk. "When I left my dad and I had just gotten into a fight. No doubt he's gonna be pissed when I walk in. I've been gone all night. I'm so dead." He felt a hand press to his shoulder and felt the spot tingle a little. "Don't worry." Percy said. "Your father's a human. You got attacked by vampires and you lived. Most people can't say the same. I highly doubt anything can scare you now." Percy leaned in a little more. "And if you want to know more about me and the whole vampire thing, I'll be on the roof at 9." Then he was gone. Nico raised his hand and took a deep breath. In and out. In and out. Percy was right. He could do this. After all, if he wanted to know about vampires, he had to survive until tonight. He moved his hand and knocked.


	4. Questions, Answers and Unbreakable Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy never thought he would find a mate. Not like this. But he's not objecting.  
> Nico asks questions and gets some weird answers.

Percy gulped when he came back to see Annabeth and Piper standing at the front gate of the mansion. He could hear Annabeth's foot tapping in annoyance as he trudged up the pathway to the gate. 

"So." Annabeth said once they were inside. "You saved a human's life. And you brought him here. And according to Piper, you even drank some of his blood. You do know how dangerous that is right?"

Percy blinked and Annabeth sighed. "Of course not." Percy tried to make things less tense by asking if they'd gotten the kids under control. "Yes." Piper said through clenched teeth. "No help from you though." Percy sighed and apologized quickly. Then he walked in silence with his 2 friends through the house's rooms. Percy made sure to do his rounds and check that every vampire was calmed and content. Then came the real problem.

 

Piper shoved him on the couch and sat down in front of him on the floor, legs crossed Indian style. Annabeth sat next to her, gray eyes piercing and dangerous. "Do you have any idea what happens when a vampire drinks the blood of a human?" Percy shook his head. "No clue. Would you care to enlighten me a little?"  
Piper took over. "When a vampire drinks the blood of a human, the 2 of them become mortally entwined. They become mated." Percy's jaw dropped. "Like vampire mated? Like mated mated? The real thing?"

"Yes." 

"How does that even work?" Annabeth answered. "The process is almost the same as when 2 vampires mate. Blood is drank. Bonds are created. But with humans, the bonds are stronger for some reason. And for whatever reason, the bonds are unbreakable if the human is pure." Percy frowned. "Pure how?"

"A virgin Percy. Was the boy you bit a virgin?" 

"I didn't bite him." Percy said defensively.  
"Well. Is he a virgin or not?" Annabeth asked impatiently. Percy thought for a moment before he decided. "Well he didn't know how to dance correctly so I'm gonna say yes. He's probably a virgin." 

"You mean you aren't sure."  
Percy scoffed. "That's not exactly something that you ask after saving someone's life Annabeth. You don't just 'I saved you from a pack of vampires now are you a virgin?" 

"But you don't know?" Piper added.  
"No. I have no idea." Percy said. "But out of curiosity, how strong would those bonds be if Nico was a virgin? Like, can I get an estimate here or-?"  
Annabeth nodded briefly. "Imagine never wanting to leave someone's side. To always know where they are and even be able to read their mind. That's how strong the bond will be. He'll be able to tell when you're thirsty and when you're distressed. It'll be impossible to break. And you'll never want anyone else."  
Percy nodded. "And are there any bad things about this situation?" Annabeth started in immediately on the bad things. "Well for starters, you might be a lot thirstier a lot faster and a lot more frequent. And since he's human, you may have some competition to keep him."

"I thought you said the bond is unbreakable."

"It is." Annabeth said. "But that won't stop other vampires who find him attractive from trying. Now let me finish." Percy nodded and gestured for Annabeth to continue speaking. "Along with those things, there's one more thing that's sure to make being imprinted with this boy increasingly difficult. If he's really a virgin, a for real honest to God, never had sex, completely innocent virgin, then his blood will be the only blood you'll ever want. And the only blood you'll physically be able to drink." 

Percy winced at that. "What do you mean physically able? Like my body wouldn't accept any other blood but his?" Annabeth nodded. "Exactly. You won't be able to stomach any other blood but his. In fact, the last vampire who imprinted on a virgin, couldn't even smell another person's blood without getting sick. He described it as gut wrenching disgust for anything but that woman's blood."  
Piper spoke again. "That's what will happen to you if you go through with this. Percy." She laid her hand on his knee softly. "Are you willing to take responsibility for this? To deal with the consequences of this all on your own?"

"Is there any other option?" Percy asked.  
It was meant to be a rhetorical question but Annabeth had an answer as usual. "You could kill him. But of course you would most likely feel his pain too."

Suddenly, something shifted in Percy's mind. His brain and body became hostile at the thought of Nico getting hurt. He could not let that happen. Not at all. That wasn't an option. "Absolutely not. I'll take responsibility for this. But Nico doesn't get hurt. Under any circumstances. How could you even suggest something like that?" He growled. Piper held him back as he stood up. Annabeth put her hands up defensively. "I'm not being serious Percy. I just wanted to see if you would have the reaction of someone who was imprinted." Percy's jaw stayed taut and his eyes lessened in hostility. Annabeth stood and clapped his on the shoulder and smiled. "Congratulations Percy. You've imprinted with a virgin boy."

 

Nico sat in his room waiting for his father to do the impossible and barge through his door. But his father wasn't home. A business trip as Persephone had said. But still Nico knew that once Hades returned, he would be in for quite the tongue lashing. But now he sat across from a notepad filled with his hand writing. The label 'Questions to ask Percy' was written at the top of the paper. His pen was out of ink and he was out of ideas. And it was only 7pm. Percy said he'd be there at 9. He still had 2 while hours to kill off. How was he supposed to do that? He had ADHD. 2 hours felt like half a lifetime to him. Luckily he didn't have to worry about killing time. As soon as he laid back, his eyes closed and he lost consciousness. Red. All Nico sees is red. On the walls. In his hair. His mouth. It's everywhere. Seeping into his skin. Implanting that scent in his nose making it impossible to think straight. So he doesn't think. He acts. Leaping forward towards that smell and not stopping until his teeth are sinking into flesh. He can hear a voice encouraging him. Telling him to take more as he sucks down the sweet liquid. He can feel hands entwined in his hair, curling and massaging his scalp. "Good boy. Take it all in." The voice said soothingly. Nico obliged, sinking his teeth in deeper and relishing in the scream he earned from doing so. Wait a minute. Scream? Nico yanked his teeth out with barely controlled restraint and looked down to the source of the sweet smell. A girl. Barely older than he was. Her throat was bared and her clothes were covered in mud and blood. She was shivering violently, her eyes beginning to glaze but still holding fear in them. "Please." She whimpered weakly and Nico came to senses. He stood and shook his head. "I can't do it." The voice chuckled. "Amazing. Do you know how hard it is to pull away? You shouldn't be able to pull away from that smell? Can't you smell it?" Nico could smell it. That was the problem. That smell was calling him. Making it impossible to think. He had to get away. To leave. He held in his breath and darted away. When Nico woke up, he was in a cold sweat and there was something knocking on his window. He wiped the sweat away and stood before he walked to the window and undid the latch. Percy climbed in and Nico closed the latch back. Percy watched him as he sat down and took a shaky breath. "You had a nightmare." He said. Nico looked up. "How did you know?" Percy shrugged off the question. "Nevermind that. I told you I would answer your questions so let's hear them." Nico brought out his notebook then realized he didn't need it. He already had the questions he wanted to ask in his head. He turned to Percy. "First things first. How did you know I had a nightmare?" Percy sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you sure you want to know? This might be a little strange." Nico raised an eyebrow. "Percy. Do I need to remind you of the events that took place in the last 24 hours?" Percy nodded and sighed. "Fine but this might take a while to explain. Even I don't fully understand it all." Nico stared at the wall in disbelief. He couldn't comprehend what Percy had just told him. "So lemme get this straight." He started. "Why you sorta kinda drank my blood, it formed a bond. And since I'm human, the bond is unbreakable. And since I'm a virgin, the bond is even more unbreakable?" Percy nodded and Nico groaned and fell back onto his bed. "Told you that it was pretty confusing." Percy said. Nico shook his head. "It's not even that. I'm just wondering how the hell this happened. I mean I know I was attacked and you saved me. But everything after that is just a blur." Percy shrugged. "Anything else you wanna ask?" "Other than the super strength that let's you crack concrete with your hands, what other-" He gestures to Percy's body. "-abilities do vampires have?" Percy hummed in acknowledgment. "Other than the super strength, we vampires also have amazing hearing. We can hear a pin drop in a room full of people from like half a mile away." "Exaggerating much?" Nico said. Percy shook his head. "No. Really. I've tried it myself. Trust me. It's true." Nico nodded. "Anything else?" "Well we can run super fast. Kinda like the vampire equivalent of Sonic the Hedgehog. And hypnotism." Nico frowned. "Hypnotism?" Percy nodded. "Yeah. Drinking blood isn't all that enjoyable when the human is screaming like a mad man in your hypersensitive ears. No offense to human of course but you do have a bad habit of shrieking like wild banshees when getting bitten." Nico rolled his eyes. "Well excuse me for being scared for my life. What else? I know there's more." Percy scoffed. "Of course there's more. Vampires are very complex creatures Nico. Some of us have exclusive powers." He said the last 2 words like a magician would say 'abracadabra'. "Exclusive how?" Nico asked. Percy shrugged and laid back beside Nico. "Well. Sometimes, the experiences of our human life give us special powers in our immortal life. Some of us can run faster than others or have twice the amount of strength. Some of us can even control elements. Like me. I can Co tool water. My friend Jason can control wind and sometimes fly. This guy named Leo can light his entire body on fire with no problem. And Piper can manipulate someone with nothing more than her voice." Nico frowned in thought before he spoke. "So if I was to become a vampire-" He restarted when he saw Percy scowl. "Not saying that I'd want to be one. That'd be insane. I'm only 16. I can't be an immortal yet. Still got stuff to mess up. But just for curiosity's sake. If I were to become a vampire and I had like...an extreme love for animals in my human life, there would be a possibility of me being able to do something animal related? Like shape shifting?" Percy nodded. "It's not impossible. But you won't be a vampire. I'll make sure of that." Nico rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I have one more question. Well maybe 2 depending on how you answer the first." "Fire away." "When we were at your mansion, you said I would be safe there. Does that mean I won't be safe here or at school?" Percy frowned. "Probably not. One of the guys who attacked you got away so no doubt his boss knows about you and will come back for you." Nico grunted. "So what do we do now?" "What do you mean?" Nico shrugged. "Well, I'm not a vampire so I probably won't be able to protect myself when they come for me. So where do we go from here? I know you're a vampire and that can't be okay. But we have a bond-ish thing so won't it be impossible to leave each other alone?" Percy grunted as well. "I don't care if you know what I am. And as for protection and the whole bond thing, I'll take care of that for you. All I need is blood." Nico flinched. "B-blood? Like my blood?" Percy nodded gravely. "I'm told you. Pretty soon I won't be able to drink anyone else's without being disgusted. Yours is the only blood I'll want. And without it I'm gonna be weaker than a newborn baby. I'm exaggerating of course but you get the idea." "What happens if you don't drink blood when you're thirsty?" Percy thought for a second. "I don't really know. I've never actually been that thirsty before. But I'd bet my immortality that it won't be good." Nico frowned. "Will I be able to tell when you're thirsty?" Percy nodded. "By the way Annabeth was talking you'll be able to tell if I'm sleepy. Maybe even read my mind." "I'm not sure I want to go that far. Reading someone's mind seems like an extreme cross of boundaries. I know I wouldn't want someone in my brain." Percy shrugged. "Doesn't seem so bad to me. It'd be nice to hear a friendly voice in my head for once." Nico didn't want to know what that meant. He knew a lot about unfriendly voices always whispering in his ears. He looked away and faked clearing his throat. Then he looked outside and saw the sun setting. "Well would you look at that. It's getting late. Time for me to eat dinner and for you to go home." He shoved Percy to the window and unlocked it. "Wait." Percy objected. Nico stopped his shoving. "What?" "I'll see you tomorrow right?" Nico stared for a minute. Then the sound of Hazel calling him down for dinner jarred him back to normality. "Yeah. Sure whatever. Just go. The last thing I need is my sister finding out that I had a guy in my room. She's protective enough as it is." He shoved Percy out and locked the window before he started for his door. He heard a loud thump from behind him and looked back to see Percy jumping off the roof. He smiled and walked downstairs. 'Maybe this won't be so bad after all.'


	5. New (immortal) Kid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico had believed Percy when he said he'd protect him. He just hadn't planned on the way things went. Or the way Percy dealt with it.

"So the sun does nothing to you?"

"Not a thing."

"What about garlic?"

"Unless stinky breath is a life threatening condition then no. Garlic does not affect me."

"Wooden stake through the heart?"

"Who wouldn't that kill?"

Nico sighed. "So nothing can kill you? At all? You're like a red eyed superman or something?"  
Percy grimaced. "No way superman is is a douche. The one thing that can actually kill him is a rock that doesn't even exist on Earth. No. I am nowhere near being superman. And vampires can be killed. Just not in very conventionally."

"Meaning?"

"You'd basically have to rip us apart and light us on fire. It's really gruesome."

Nico thought about that for a second before he reacted. "Wait. Remember that guy you killed because he bit me?"  
Percy rolled his eyes. "Of course I remember."

"You didn't rip him apart."

"Yes I did." Percy said. "I just waited until you were breathing and stable before I went out and did it. He's dead Nico trust me." Nico nodded. "I do trust you. I don't have a choice we are kind of bonded or whatever. It's the others I don't trust. The ones who might come after me. And who is this 'boss' guy anyway? Why does he want me? He can go drink anybody anytime he wants. So why me?" "That's the thing." Percy said. "You're special." "Yeah sure I am." Nico grunted. "No." Percy countered "Really. There's something off about you. Something that separates you from the rest of the humans. Something about your blood." Nico frowned. "My blood? What is my blood type weird or something?" Percy shook his head. "It's not so much the blood type but the smell of the blood. Each type has a different smell to vampires. O- positive is kind of tangy. Smells like a lemon almost. O- negative is sweeter smelling because not a lot people have it. You smell insanely sweet. Like a cheery daiquiri and vanilla and all that good stuff. When I first saw you I thought you might be AB- positive because of how strong the scent was. But when Evan bit you and your real smell came out-" Percy took a deep breath. "-I instantly knew you were special." "So what?" Nico asked. "I'm like super rare or something?" Percy nodded. "The rarest of all the types. Your blood is AB- negative. Only 1 percent of the entire United States has that blood type. Compared to the others, you'd be considered a jewel in the vamp world. I know a lot of vampires who'd kill to get their teeth in you." Nico chuckled. "Too bad I'm taken." The silence after that was long and awkward. Nico stared at the clouds and Percy watched the people in the park walk around. "Hey." He said when he was done. "Are you still grounded?" Nico shrugged. "Dunno. Persephone doesn't know what to do. We're waiting until my dad gets back in 2 days from his business trip for me to get my punishment." "Who's Persephone?" "Stepmother." Percy nodded and the silence was back. Nico now watched the people in the park while Percy watched the clouds. Until Nico noticed something. "How long has that guy been there?" Percy sat up and looked in the direction Nico was pointing to see a man by a fountain. He was wearing a long dark green shirt and black jeans with rips in them. The hood over his head blocked Nico's view of his face but it was clear he was staring right at them. "I dunno." Percy said, squinting. "Why?" Nico frowned. "I just noticed he been staring at me for a long time. I even remember me tripping over hid foot when we walked over here." Nico looked over rat Percy as he spoke and frowned deeper at the sight. "What are you doing?" "Looking at his face." "You can't see his face." "Maybe you can't." Percy said. "But I have enhanced vision. I can see that he has a scar on his cheek and hair that was blonde until he dyed it red." Percy squinted some more. "And he just moved so I can see that his eyes are-" Percy choked and growled. "What? His eyes are what?" Nico pressed. "Red. His eyes are red." "So you mean that he's a-" Nico didn't get to finish his sentence. The man by the fountain was gone in a blur of motion. All that was left was a spiral of dust. Nico paled. "Where did he go?" Percy growled deeper. "It's time to go." Nico didn't argue. He stood and let Percy pull him away from the park. The vampire's scowl didn't lessen and it seemed as if his growl was only getting deeper. "He's following us." Percy said, answering Nico's unasked question. "Take me home." Nico said. Percy growled again. "You can't go home. Not now. If you go now you'll be putting your family in danger." "So where are you gonna take me?" "I don't know yet. But I'll figure it out while we're out running this guy. Hop on my back. And hold on for dear life." Nico did as he was told and suddenly they were moving. No. Moving wasn't the right word for it. More like they were ghosting. Moving faster than Nico could comprehend. But his stomach understood enough. It jerked violently and Nico had to hold back his lunch. He could see building after building wishing by at impossible speeds that made him dizzy. He finally understood the horrible plague of motion sickness. He felt the wind pull at his face and buried his head into Percy's shoulder. He heard Percy mutter, "Damn. He's a speedy little son of a bitch isn't he?" Before he sped up, making Nico's insides turn to mush. Nico didn't know how long Percy ran. All he knew was that when Percy stopped, he had to peel Nico off his back like a sticker. Nico collapsed on the concrete and groaned. "I'm guessing that was the super speed you were talking about." Percy nodded and sat down beside him. "Funny thing is I'm not even out of breath. But you look a little pale. Maybe I should warn you next time." "Next time?" Nico whined before his stomach settled and he sat up. "How about we just never do that again? That sounds like a fun idea." "You'll get used to it. Eventually." Nico groaned again. "What time is it?" Percy checked the watch on his wrist. "A quarter to 8. Why?" "I have to get home. I have school tomorrow and there's a butt load of homework waiting for me on my bed." Nico didn't have to look at Percy to tell he was frowning. "Why didn't you do it before we left?" "It's hard to concentrate when you're thinking about a vampire who can show up any time." Nico reasoned. Percy sighed and stood up. "Come on. Hop on my back." Nico paled. "No thanks. I'd rather walk." "Just get on, hold tight and close your eyes." Nico did as he was told and they were off. Honestly he didn't know how they were back so fast. It seemed like Percy had been running faster than before. Nico's stomach didn't like that. When he got home he throw up the hot dog he'd eaten at the park, then dry heaved for 5 more minutes before he was finally out of the bathroom. In his room, Hazel had replaced Percy. She was sitting on his bed looking motherly and pristine. "Mom's been worried all day about you. You didn't answer any of my texts. Where have you been all day?" Nico shrugged. "I went to the park with a friend." "All day long?" "He didn't wanna go anywhere else. He just moved here and he's not used to the surrounding area yet. I said the park would be a nice place to spend the day." Technically Nico wasn't lying. While he doubted that Percy had just moved here, he had offered to go to the park. Percy had gladly accepted. Hazel raised an eyebrow, golden eyes shining with doubt. "Then why we're you just puking up your intestines in the bathroom?" "The value of those park hot dogs is really going down." Hazel sighed and stood up. "Nico. Remember what I told you." Nico nodded. "I'm being safe Hazel. Trust me I'm gonna be the last person you find in a body bag." Hazel nodded and planted a kiss on his forehead before she walked out, leaving Nico with his thoughts. As soon as the door shut Nico frowned. He hated lying to his sister. Usually he told her everything. But he couldn't tell her this. He wouldn't let her get involved. He would deal with being pursued and followed. He was used to it. Used to being sought after because his dad was 'filthy rich' according to some kid at school. He would deal with it all as long as Hazel stayed safe. ________________________________________________________ School was hell. And Mondays were even worse. But that Monday, Nico could have sworn that the universe was against him. To start off his shitty Monday, his alarm clock refused to go off so he woke up late and had to rush to get dressed. Then he missed his bus and had to wake up Persephone to take him to school. (She had not been happy about that.) And finally, when he got out the car and walked to the door, his foot got ran over by a skateboarder. Yeah. Things weren't off to a good start. But did Nico bitch and whine about it? No. Because he knew how things went. Shit happens. Sometimes you wake up late. Sometimes you miss your bus. And sometimes your cranky stepmother gripes at you for 10 minutes as she drives you to school because you missed your bus. That was just the way life went sometimes. So while he was a little pissed about the skateboarder thing, he sucked it up and walked inside. Nico didn't pay any mind to the rumors of a new kid. The rumors were always fake. After all no one wanted to move here. Not even the people who lived here wanted to live here. They wanted to be in the big city living it up like Kim Kardashian or some other celebrity socialite. But when the rumor turned out to be true, Nico still wasn't surprised. Sure people didn't move here. But some did move back. Usually it was some family of 5 who's parents wanted to show their kids how peaceful life was outside of the city. It never lasted long though. Either the kids wore the parents down or the parents remembered why they'd left in the first place. It didn't matter how they left. All that mattered was that they were gone. Leaving the people who always been here alone. Honestly Nico didn't know which group he belonged to. He'd love to go to the city and see how things were up there. And he'd love to travel. But a part of him wanted to stay here where he knew people and make a life here. But either way, his day was about to be ruined. Nico walked into class and took his seat. Homeroom was most likely his favorite period ever. Mr. Wright was the best. He was a happy man in his late thirties who had slightly graying hair and a winning smile. He always had the best lessons and could help a student with basically anything. But the best thing about Mr. Wright was his sense of humor. He let his students take a crack at him for anything. And then came the fun part. Nico sighed when he realized he didn't have a pencil. He raised his hand. "Mr. Wright. I need a-" the mechanical pencil smacked him in the palm. "I'm going to need that one back at the end of the day. Wouldn't want a piece of that mop you call heir getting my pencil dirty." Nico smirked. "Oh don't start with the hair. It's clean and at least mine doesn't look like I tried to dye it white but ran out of the money I needed to finish the job." The class 'ohhed' and Mr. Wright was quick to respond. "My salary is nothing to laugh at Mr. di Angelo." "No but your shirt is." Nico quipped pointing to the Superman shirt his teacher was wearing. "Everyone knows that Superman is a douche." "Actually a douche is a woman's care product." "Exactly." The class erupted into laughter and Nico smiled in victory. Mr. Wright rolled his eyes and told the class to quiet down. "Alright. Alright. We can all Se Nico's talent for making fun of superheroes." Another wave of giggles. "But in all seriousness. We have a new student who's been waiting patiently to come in." At the mention of a new student everyone stopped talking. One girl called out, "Mr. Wright? Why would anyone move here of all places?" The teacher shrugged. "Who knows? But anyway he's here and he's waiting." Mr. Wright gestured to the door and when it open, Nico nearly had a heart attack. "Percy?" He sputtered before the vampire could even introduce himself. Percy made a show of looking surprised. "Nico? You go here? Cool." "I take it that you 2 know each other." Mr. Wright said. "Yeah." Nico said. "We definitely know each other." "Well since you 2 are such good friends then Nico, feel free to show Percy the ropes. Take a look at his schedule and show him to his classes." Nico heard at least 3 other girls whine, "Lucky" and resisted the urge to growl. The bell rang, ending the period and releasing students to their free period. Nico frowned at Percy. "What are you doing here?" He hissed. Percy shrugged. "I told you I would watch over you." "Yeah. Watch over. Not stalk." Nico said as he grabbed his books from his table. "I'm not stalking you Nico. If I was stalking you, you'd never know. So no. I am not stalking you. I am watching over you. As I said I would." Nico sighed and snatched Percy's schedule from his hands. Then he choked. "If you aren't stalking me, then why are all of your classes the same as mine?" "That was really hard to do actually. That secretary was really hard to put in a trance. I can't believe you have physical education for 4th period." "It wasn't my choice. And wait a minute. You put Mrs . Carmichael in a trance just to get the same classes as me?" "Yes." "And how is that not considered stalking?" "Because when I stalk something, I have intentions of killing it. I have no such intentions for you. Quite the opposite actually." Nico sighed again and pointed to the door of their first class. "For first period, we have band. I play the bass. And since you don't have an instrument-" "Actually I play the bass too. I also play the violin, the piano, saxophone, viola, and the occasional cello." Nico stopped short and stared wide eyed at the green eyed vampire. "What?" Percy said as he opened the door. "I've been alive for almost 80 years. When you're immortal, you have a lot of free time." Nico shook his head and let Percy hold the door open for him as he walked into class. Today was gonna be a long day.


	6. The First Taste

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy can't take it anymore. He's starving and nothing tastes right anymore. He needs to think of a plan. And fast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really need to stop. Oh well. Enjoy.

Percy's throat burned as the contents of his stomach were thrown up. Again.  
To be honest he was surprised that he was able to swallow the horrid substance let alone keep it down long enough to get to the bathroom. He had been so lucky last time. 

He stared down at the mess in the toilet and nearly threw a fit. So. Much. Blood. That he couldn't eat. He didn't know why or how but it tasted like crap to him. Straight up horse shit. And the smell was even worse. Percy was never one to curse his enhanced senses but at the moment he would have killed to be human so he wouldn't have to smell that-. Even thinking about it gave him chills. He took a shaky breath and sat on the toilet seat with his head in his hands.  
He didn't know what was happening. He'd been perfectly fine just a couple of week ago. He'd been able to run, jump and crush things at will. But now he couldn't even get through a crowd of people without having to barf. He didn't know how he'd survived the school day with Nico. Twice he had excused himself to the bathroom when he felt it coming, but it never did.  
When did humans start smelling so bad? When did he become unable to stomach blood? And why the hell wouldn't his stomach give him a break?  
"Oww." He moaned as another painful lurch shot through his abdomen. "What is wrong with me?" Another lurch and Percy had had it. "Annabeth." He croaked, knowing that as long as his friend was in the house, she'd hear him. The blonde was at his side in less than a second. "What happe-? Oh my God is that blood?" She was holding her nose so her voice came out nasally. Percy nodded pathetically and glanced up at her. He could tell she was thinking hard. Her silver almost gray eyes were glinting and her mouth was set in a hard line. Her blonde hair was pulled into a sort of messy bun, hinting that she'd either been reading or she had been sleeping. "Did I wake you up?" He asked since he hated doing that. Taking people from their dreams just because he had a problem. Annabeth nodded and when Percy tried to apologize, she shushed him. "It's fine. By the way things look, you had a perfectly good reason to wake me up. Now what happened?" Percy explained in detail the feelings of disgust he'd felt all day. All week even. He told her how rancid the humans had smelled to him and how he nearly threw up when he walked into the auditorium for an assembly. "Did Nico still smell the same?" Annabeth asked. Percy nodded. "If anything he smelled better." As if that was possible. But every day it seemed that Nico's alluring scent would get stronger. Reach farther. Before, Percy had been able to avoid temptation by sitting across the room. Now, he could smell him from the hallway. And being in enclosed spaces didn't help him. Whenever a teacher closed the door he'd ask to have it open again. Most of the teachers were okay with it as long as the hallways weren't noisy. But in the classes that the door had to stay shut, Percy went through hell. Between the rancid garbage smell and the sweet perfume of Nico, Percy was beginning to regret making the decision to go to school in the first place. Annabeth frowned in deep thought for a while, creating a rather uncomfortable silence between the 2 of them. Percy glanced around the room for something to do. His bathroom was simple. A small modern- ish sink. A big bathtub with a shower. Gray tiles. And white walls painted a light blue. The blood in and on the toilet stood out. Like a dot of white on a canvas painted black. Finally Annabeth spoke. "Percy. Do you remember what I told you about that bond?" Percy started to nod, then shook his head because he'd forgotten most of the information she'd told him. Annabeth sighed as if she expected that. "Then I'll jog your memory. I told you that when you're bonded with a human, sooner or later, their blood will smell much better than other humans. In fact, the other humans will smell disgusting in comparison. Remember now?" Percy nodded. He definitely remembered that conversation now. That was when he'd taken responsibility for what he'd done. Annabeth continued. "After we talked about it, I realized that we only had information from a secondary source. Someone who hadn't even gone through the experience but had only heard about it. So I went to the one vampire who knew how it felt. Chiron." Percy's eyes widened. "Chiron? Like our creator/dad? That Chiron? He was bonded to a human?" Annabeth nodded. "Still is. His mate, Alisia. She was turned by him after he almost killed her by drinking too much of her blood." "Well what did he say? Does he know how to help?" "He said that it's inevitable. Sooner or later, it always happens. In your case, sooner. He does however know how to help. He said that human are often reluctant to let you bite them so you can always just have someone extract the blood from him and drink it that way. And while it won't be as satisfying as taking it straight from his body, you'll be able to keep it down. Do you think Nico would be willing to try something like that?" Percy shrugged and winced as another wave of hunger induced pain exploded in his stomach. "I don't know." He said. "But I hope he will cause my stomach is killing me." ________________________________________________________ When Nico's phone lit up at dinner, all eyes turned to him. His father, who had returned that day, frowned. "Are we keeping you from something?" Nico shook his head no and sent the call to voicemail. Not even 10 seconds later, the phone rang again. Again, with the help of an annoyed look from Hades, the call was sent to voicemail. By the 5th time, his father was glaring. "Just answer it. Whoever is calling you this many times must be in trouble." Persephone said. "I'll put your dinner up so you can eat it later." Nico nodded and excused himself from the table. He didn't have to click the screen to know who'd been calling. Nico had set the ring tone for that one person only. Apocalyptic by Halestorm. Percy had called. Sure enough when Nico turned his phone on, Percy's name was on the screen along with a phone icon and the number 5. Nico clicked his contact then call. Percy picked up on the first ring. "Why didn't you pick up?" His voice sounded battered and faded as if he'd been screaming at someone for a long time. "I'm not allowed to answer my phone during dinner. Sorry. What's wrong with your voice?" "That doesn't matter now. I'm outside. Can you come out for a while?" "Lemme check." Nico yelled downstairs to ask for permission to leave the house. "For how long?" Persephone called back. "How long?" Nico echoed. "About an hour. Maybe 2 at the most." "Can I say an hour and a half?" He received a grunt in response. Nico yelled the time back to his stepmother and was given permission to leave with the condition that he had dishes when he got back. He accepted and started throwing on his coat and shoes. He bounded down the steps, said a quick, "Later" to his family before he closed the door behind him. The second Nico stepped outside he felt it. The violent pull of his stomach that made him wince. He couldn't see Percy anywhere. Instead there was a black car parked on a curb in front of his house. He could see a silhouette in the back seat of the car and a blonde getting out of the driver's side. He observed the girl as she walked towards him. Her blonde hair, pulled into a ponytail. Her gray eyes and her tanned skin. "Nico di Angelo I presume?" She asked when she was close enough for Nico to hear. Nico nodded. "That's me. But who are you?" "My name is Annabeth Chase. I'm a friend of Percy's. I need you to come with me." "Is Percy okay?" Nico asked, concern growing. "He's fine. Sort of. I'll explain on the way. But I really need you to get in the car." She turned away, leaving Nico with a decision. Go with the girl who wouldn't tell him anything. Or go to bed. His stomach made that decision for him by making another painful jolt. Nico followed Annabeth and reached for the handle of the backseat door. "Not there. I think it'd be safer to sit in the front." Annabeth suggested. When Nico frowned, she explained. "Percy's not exactly what you would call stable at the moment. So if you don't want a pair of fangs in your neck as soon as you get in, I'd suggest sitting up front. Just to be safe." Nico crawled in the front seat and held his breath when Annabeth pulled off like a Nascar racer. His hands gripped the side of the door until the car slowed to pull into a long driveway. The car stopped at the big door of Percy's mansion and Annabeth was out in a blur of motion. "Nico." She said, jarring Nico back to life. He followed Annabeth through the halls of the mansion and tried to shut out the feeling of being watched. It didn't work. He glanced around at the eyes that were peering out of doors and other crevices to look at him. He tapped Annabeth on the shoulder. "Why are they all staring?" Annabeth looked around as if she'd just noticed. Then she shrugged. "This is a house for vampires. A human hasn't been here since Percy was a human. Not to mention the fact that they're all worried about Percy. He's been pretty messed up lately. We've all been worried." "Why? What's been going on?" Annabeth shook her head. "I'll explain when we get to the medic room." "Medic room?" "The room we used when the last human was here. It's been a little underused but it has all the things we need to do what we need to do." "What do we need to do?" Annabeth walked to a closed white door and pulled out a key. She unlocked the door and opened it. "Piper." She said quietly. In 2 seconds flat, a girl was standing next to Nico. He recognized her as the vampire he'd met the first time he was here. After Percy had saved his life. "Is Jason keeping watch over Percy?" Piper nodded, the light blue feather in her hair bouncing as she did. "Yep. They're in the game room. But we'd better hurry. When I went in there, Percy was hunched over and his eyes were super red. If we're going to do this, we'd better get to it." The 3 of them walked into the room and Annabeth closed the door behind them. Nico looked around the room at the medical supplies. There were needles on a table next to a few bags. "Seriously. Can anyone explain what is going on here?" Nico said in frustration. Annabeth made him sit down. "This could take a long time so you might want to make yourself comfortable." Nico sat down on a stool and looked up to let her know he was listening. "Fire away." Annabeth took a deep breath then it hitched and she held it. She was across the room in another stool in the blink of an eye. "Do you know what a bond is?" Nico nodded. "Percy told me about it. Something about us being physically and mentally connected or something like that? He's can only drink my blood right?" Annabeth frowned gravely. "He told you." "Of course he did." "Did he tell you that when a vampire gets too hungry, they go into a frenzy and attack anything with a heartbeat? And if the vampire is bonded, drinking anything but their bonded mate's blood will make them sick? Did he tell you about the excruciating pain that we feel when our bodies start to turn against us because we haven't kept ourselves fed? Did he tell you any of that?" Nico shook his head. "That's what he's going through? Is that why my stomach feels like crap. And why some guy named Jason is watching over Percy?" "Jason is a vampire as well. And a good friend of Percy's. He's keeping watch over him to make sure that Percy doesn't try anything. And did you say that your stomach hurts?" "Yeah. It's been like this since I left the house. Is it because of Percy?" Annabeth looked at Piper and they seemed to have a mental conversation for a minute before Piper nodded and Piper flitted away. Annabeth set her eyes on Nico, gray piercing through black. "What?" Nico said. "Nico. Do you have any idea how crucial this is becoming so fast? It's only been what? A week? Maybe 2? And you can already feel his hunger? Something like that should have taken months, maybe even a year. I hate to say this but Nico you aren't normal. There's something off about you. This shouldn't be possible. There's something going on that we'll need to talk about. But for now..." Annabeth walked to a small table in front of Nico's stool and lifted a needle. "I need some of your blood." "For Percy?" "Most of it is going to Percy." Annabeth said. "Since you probably won't be comfortable letting Percy bite you just yet. But I need a small batch to examine to see if there really is something special about you. Just to make sure. Extend your arm please." Nico did as he was asked and heard Annabeth suck in her breath before he felt the needle stab through his skin. He flinched and watched as the dark red substance filtered through a tube to a little baggie. "What's that for?" He asked, trying to make conversation. "This is for Percy to drink. It should ease his stomach." Annabeth said before she pulled the needle out and closed Nico's wound with a bandage. "Piper." She said softly. Nico didn't know how it was possible that Piper had heard her. Had she been waiting outside the door? Or had she really been able to hear that well? Nevertheless, Piper was walking through the door in a matter of seconds. Her hands were full with a big book that looked too old to be useful. "Did you get it?" Annabeth asked. Piper nodded and set the book down. Annabeth handed her the bag of blood. "Good. Give this to Percy and let him drain it. Then come back and help me do the mark." Piper nodded and was gonna again. Nico blinked. "Mark? What's a mark?" "It's like a tattoo. Since your human, you don't have the power of regeneration like most vampires do. So your blood won't come back and eventually you'll die from lack of circulating blood. The mark will stop that. It'll give you the power of regeneration so when if Percy ever takes too much blood, he won't kill you unintentionally. It's just a safety precaution." Annabeth explained. Nico nodded and turned when he saw something move in the corner of his eye. Piper was back. "How is he?" Annabeth asked. "He's doing okay. But he says he can smell Nico from here and it's driving him insane. He'll be fine but he's still a little hungry." Piper reassured. "He'll just have to wait until the mark is in effect to get more blood." Annabeth said as she opened the book and peered at the page in frustration. "Ugh. I can never understand how you do this. It's impossible." "It's not impossible." Piper said smugly. "It's magic." "Which is why it's impossible." Annabeth countered. "You know how to do this. Help me please?" Piper grinned. "You need my help? You of all people? I'd be honored to." To that Annabeth rolled her eyes and turned to Nico. "I'm gonna warn you Nico. This may hurt. Like a lot. But it'll keep you alive. Now, Piper is going to do this since I know nothing about it." She stepped back and let Piper take her place in front of Nico. Piper saw Nico's uncomfortable expression and smiled. "Relax. There's nothing to be afraid of." Suddenly, Nico felt extremely calm. As if he wasn't about to get a tattoo like mark on his body that would regenerate his blood when Percy took some. Then he remembered what Percy had said about her powers. She had the ability to manipulate someone with nothing more than her voice. And she had just used that power on him. Was it wrong that he didn't care? Piper peered at the open page and then clicked her tongue. "Prepare yourself. This might sting a little." She brought his finger up to the edge of the page and slid it down. The paper sliced through the skin of his finger with ease. He flinched and Piper apologized. "Now." Piper said. "There's this huge speech I have to give you. Kind of like an oath. So if you hate speeches I apologize in advance." Nico nodded crisply and Piper began. Her eyes began to glow a little as she spoke. "Nico di Angelo. You have come to us, bonded and accepting of your fate. You have learned the dangers of being attached to a vampire. And you witnessed these dangers first hand. Still, you approach, ready to give your blood, your life and your love to a creature as dark as the night. This oath will make sure that you are capable of giving as much as you will receive. We will begin now. Nico di Angelo. Do you solely swear to never deny your vampire the blood he needs to survive?" Nico realized that he was supposed to answer that and gave a squeaky "I swear." Piper nodded. "Nico di Angelo. Do you solely swear to never abandon your vampire as doing so could very well kill him?" "I swear." Nico said with a little more confidence. "Nico di Angelo. Do you solely swear that your vampire will be your one and only forever for loving anyone but him could very well destroy him?" That one caught him off guard. If he loved anyone else, he could kill Percy? But still he nodded and said proudly "I swear." "Nico di Angelo. Do you solely swear to bind your blood with the blood of your vampire and receive the gifts he has to offer and to never abuse them?" "I swear." Piper nodded again. "Then Nico di Angelo, since your faith is true and your intentions pure, I hereby bind your blood to Perseus Jackson. There will be no one else. He will be your only. Accept this mark and the gifts that come with it." Piper's eyes glowed with more intensity as a sharp pain made itself known on Nico's chest. No. Not on his chest. In his chest. As if his heart was being branded and not just his skin. The area burned like a wildfire and Nico grit his teeth. The fire spread, from his heart to his arms and legs and everywhere else. Nico could see a little boy in front of him. His eyes a beautiful shade of sea green. "Thank you for choosing me." He said happily. Then he was gone, along with the pain. Nico opened his eyes- he hadn't known he'd closed them- and blinked. He felt different. Stronger. He sat up (when had he fallen asleep) and looked around. He was lying in a bed with blue and white satin sheets. The room around him was pearly white and clean. How had he gotten here? "You passed out." A voice said as if it's owner had been reading Nico's mind. "I can." It said. Nico looked around for the source and found a smiling Percy leaning against the wall closest to him. "Percy." Percy smiled brighter and stepped closer. "You did it. You actually went through with it." Nico frowned. "Went through with what?" Percy rolled his eyes. "The mark silly. You actually got it. I didn't think you would do it." "I don't know what you're talking about. " Nico said, confused. Percy sighed. "Right. Annabeth did say you might have some short term memory loss. You got a blood mark put on you so that if I ever lose control and take too much of your blood, you won't die. It's right here." Percy reached for the hem of Nico's shirt and tugged it up. Then he poked Nico's chest. "See? Right there. Over your heart." Nico looked down and gasped. Percy was right. There was a mark above where his heart was in the shape of a trident. Surrounding the trident was a pair of black wings and curled around the trident's staff was a black rose. Percy lifted his shirt to reveal the same mark on his chest. "You and I are really-?" Nico asked. Percy answered with a nod and a smile. "By the way." He said. "You taste really good. I didn't think blood could taste that good. But damn." Percy liked his lips as if he were still remembering the taste. Nico flinched as a bundle of lecherous thoughts rammed themselves into his head. "Percy." He said in a warning tone. "Why is your voice in my head saying really perverted things about my blood?" Percy froze. "You can hear my thoughts?" "You can hear mine can't you?" "I thought that it was just a one way thing. Like me being able to know what you're thinking so I can embarrass you about it. Not you being able to do it back. That's not even fair." Nico frowned. "Not fair? Percy. You drank my blood and we have matching magic tattoos on our chests that apparently bind us by blood, body and soul. I have gone through more trouble with you in the last 2 weeks than I have for my own sister. The least you could do is let me poke around in your head." Percy cringed. "I'm pretty sure you don't want to know what goes on in my head when I'm hungry. Most of those thoughts were perverted and about you." Nico frowned. "How perverted are we talking here?" "Trust me. You don't want to know. It's not pretty." Nico nodded in acknowledgment. "Okay. Noted. But would you mind giving me a clue as to what was going on with you all day?" Percy grimaced. "You sure you wanna hear about something like that? It's not exactly pleasant." Nico shuffled closer and gave Percy his best 'paying attention' face. Percy sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Okay. Um... I don't know how to put this. I guess it started when I got home from school. I couldn't even think about anything but how horrible your classmates smelled. And my stomach was killing me. I tried to drink some blood we get from the hospital- don't ask- but I couldn't keep it down. It tasted disgusting. And all I kept thinking about was you and how amazing you always smelled and everything in my head was just you. You. You. And then Annabeth helped me out by driving to get you since I couldn't control myself and I was starting to lose my powers. And-" "Wait." Nico interrupted. "You were losing your powers?" Percy nodded. "Yeah. You see blood gives vampires strength. The more of it we have in our system, the stronger we are. And if our bodies don't have enough blood, we start to lose some of our gifts. Like if we don't drink for about 2 or 3 weeks, we lose any specialized gifts we may have. Any longer than that and we start losing the more essential powers. Like our super strength and speed. Eventually, we become just as vulnerable as humans. It's not a good thing." "How long had you gone without blood for?" Percy shrugged. "About 4 weeks." Nico's eyes widened. "So if I hadn't agreed to give you my blood today-" "Bye bye super speed. And half my strength would disappear." Nico frowned. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. Why didn't you tell me? We could have worked something out." Percy shrugged. "I didn't want to trouble you with my problems. And I thought I could hold out a little longer. At least until I could get away and hunt for some animal blood to sate me for a while. All I could think about was you and it was driving me insane. By the time Annabeth brought you back, I couldn't see or think or hear or do anything. Everything I could do was just distorted and drunken and high. I could smell you from the driveway. And I would've jumped you if Jason hadn't dragged me away into the game room to distract me." "It was nothing. You were weak as hell. Dragging you in was easy. It was keeping you in that was the hard part." A new voice said. Nico whipped around (he really had to stop doing that before he got whiplash) to see a blonde boy with stark blue eyes and a scar on his lip. "Who're you?" "I'm Jason." The boy said. "The guy who stopped your boyfriend from jumping you when you walked in the gate." Nico froze and thrust his hand out. "My name is Nico di Angelo. It's nice to meet you. Thank you for the help with Percy." Jason chuckled. "Calm down, I don't bite. Not you at least. You're off limits to the rest of us. Ever since Percy got his hands on you, you've been declared untouchable, unthinkable. He'd kill me if I tried." "Damn right." Percy snarled, bringing Nico to his side. Nico rolled his eyes. "Stop being do dramatic. If I was going to go anywhere, I wouldn't have gotten that mark and I wouldn't have given you my blood. So calm it with the theatrics will you?" Percy smiled and Jason watched them closely. "What?" Nico asked. "Forgive me for asking but isn't it a school night? Shouldn't you be at home by now?" That spurred Nico immediately. "What time is it?" He said through clenched teeth, really hoping that it wasn't as late as his mental clock was saying it was. "About 9." Percy said and Nico flinched. "Ah hell. No no no. Ah dad's gonna kill me." Nico muttered as he flashed out of bed and rushed aroung, throwing on his socks and shoes. (That he didn't know he'd even taken off.) "What?" Percy asked. "If I'm not home in 10 minutes, my dad is gonna ground me forever. And it took me 2 minutes to get here by car. I'm so dead." "Not necessarily." Jason said. "Percy could always super speed you home." "I'd rather be grounded." Percy didn't give him enough time to frown or even shudder at the thought of moving that fast. Nico was on his back in a split second. "Oh no. I'm not letting you get grounded. Not when there's so much more of my messed up world to show you. I'll get you home in record time." Then, Percy leaped- fucking leaped- out the window, with Nico behind him, screaming like a murder victim.


	7. Hidden Bloodlines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy knows it's true. He supposes he's always known. After all he can't classify Nico as normal. But even though he knows it's true, he won't accept it. Not until Nico's life depends on it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is pretty long. I don't even know why but once I started I couldn't stop. This is basically just Percy's backstory of how he became a vampire and why he doesn't want Nico to be one. I'm pretty sure it's messed up somewhere so forgive me for any typos.

Percy got the first text in science class.

He was sitting beside a sleepy Nico, switching between watching Nico attempt to stay awake and watching his teacher explain how a cell divided (Who cared? It divided and it worked. Let it go) when he felt it. A vibration in his pocket.  
His phone.  
He checked to make sure that the teacher was facing the board before he pulled it out.

'What are you doing?' -Annabeth 

Percy frowned and looked up to check again before he replied.  
'At school with Nico. Why?'  
The response was instantaneous. 

'There's something you need to see. It's about Nico's blood. Something is wrong with it.'

Percy checked again.  
'What's wrong with it?'

'You need to come see it to believe it. It's hard to explain unless you actually look at it.'

'I'll be there as soon as I can.'

Percy shut off his phone and poked Nico awake. The boy jerked up and looked around. "Huh? What?"

"I have to go. Annabeth needs me. I'll be back when this is taken care of."  
Nico nodded sluggishly. "Yeah okay. Have fun." Then his head was back in his arms.  
Percy sighed and thought of ways to escape the classroom without a problem. He couldn't find one. Then he remembered the way he got out of class when he was still human. He just faked being sick. That always worked. And now that he had hypnotism powers, he would definitely get out. Of course he had to make it convincing. And what better way than to actually have to puke?

He took a deep breath through his nose and nearly barfed then and there. He hadn't breathed all day. Vampires didn't have to breathe since their lungs need the air to keep him alive. (After all, he was technically dead.) So while the lack of sense of smell was mildly uncomfortable, he trudged through it to avoid any unnecessary incidents due to disgusting smells. (Seriously. He knew that any other human than Nico would smell gross but this was going a little far.) 

Percy took another painfully disgust filled breath and only raised his hand when he felt it coming. "Ms. Barnes." He said when the teacher answered his hand.  
"Can I go to the restroom? I have to-" His sentence was cut short by a few dry heaves and he was granted immediate access to a hallway pass. Teachers really don't like throw up on their floors and desks.  
Percy raced (not using his powers of course) out of the classroom into the hallway. Then he took sharp detour to the front door. 

He waited until he was out of sight from the school to really race. He felt his muscles unlock as he picked up speed; the wind blowing his hair into his face. He zipped past houses and cars, all of them shockingly clear even though he knew he was nothing but a blur to the humans. He was at the gates in less than 10 minutes.  
He walked through his mansion, waving to his vampire family. They waved back and went back to whatever chores Piper had assigned to them. "Has anyone seen Annabeth?"

"In her room. I think." A girl with blue streaked hair said. Percy nodded his thanks and zipped to Annabeth's room.  
He knocked slowly on the door and it opened on the first knock.  
Annabeth yanked him in by his wrist and slammed the door behind them.  
"So what's going on?"

"You need to see this."  
Annabeth pulled him into her room and he looked around. It was just as it had been when she had first moved in. White walls. Books strewn around. A hammock in the middle of the room. A bay window and a huge bed. The walls were painted a slight blue gray, like the color of sea foam only lighter. The rest of the room was tidy. It was the bed that was a mess.  
The white sheets were covered in papers and a laptop.

"Um busy much?" Percy joked.  
Annabeth frowned. "Not now Perce. This is serious. You need to see this."  
She dragged Percy to her bed and plopped him on it. "Look at this."  
Percy leaned forward and looked at the screen of Annabeth's laptop. A series of different lines were moving up and down on a graph. Percy raised an eyebrow. "What am I looking at here?" "When Nico came over, I pulled some blood from him to examine. I thought it would help or something. And the results I got were...weird to say the least. Do you see this line?" She pointed to a red line and Percy nodded "That line is the blood code for a vampire." Then she pointed to a blue line. "This one represents the blood of a human." Finally she pointed to a black line on between the 2 other lines. "And this line represents Nico's blood. Do you see the problem here?" Percy shook his head. "Not really. Care to explain?" Annabeth nodded. "The line that represents Nico's blood is between the 2 other lines. That means that Nico's blood isn't human or vampire. That has to mean that's he's both. A hybrid. Half vampire, half human. Don't you think that's weird?" "And impossible?" Percy said. "Vampires can't have kids with a human. To do that they'd have to have sex with a human. And we can't do that without losing control and crushing them." Annabeth nodded. "I know that it's highly improbable but wouldn't it explain so much?" "Like what?" "Like how fast he recovered from the blood mark. Most of the other humans who went through that took at least 2 hours to wake up. But Nico, he woke up after 45 minutes. You don't think that's strange. Or at least strange? At all?" Percy shrugged. "He's special. That doesn't mean he's half vampire." "Percy. DNA doesn't lie. And I know you hate the idea but he's not exactly human." "Yes he is!" Percy yelled. "He's not gonna be a vampire! He's not half vampire or half anything else! He's going to live a perfectly normal human life! He's gonna grow old and get married and be happy. I won't let him end up like me! Like mom! So let it go!" "Percy!" Annabeth called as Percy raced out her room and out of the house. Suddenly it felt like he was suffocating. He couldn't move fast enough. Couldn't escape. He ran as fast as he could go and still, his demons were keeping pace with him. He knew he couldn't outrun them. He never could. But it didn't hurt to try. _________________________________________________________ Percy hadn't meant to become a vampire. Then again, who did? But still he hadn't wanted to be this. This...whatever he was. He had actually started this week waiting for his dad to come home. "What of he got lost?" "I'm sure he didn't get lost Percy." "But what if he got attacked by a shark?" "Well. That's why your uncle is there with him." "Well what if there was a really bad storm?" "Percy. Your father has gone fishing more than enough times to know what to do in a storm." Percy stared out the window some more, waiting for his father to return. "But are you sure hes coming back today? I mean this isn't the first time he'd be late for my birthday. What's so different about today?" Sally Jackson frowned. "Perseus. You and I both know that's not true. Your father has always tried to make it on time. Just because it takes time doesn't mean that he won't show up." Sally smiled. "Maybe the day will go faster if you busy yourself. Go outside and play with Grover Percy frowned. "I can't. Grover isn't home yet." "How do you know that?" "Because it's my birthday and Grove never forgets my birthday. If he was home he'd be here shoving a cupcake in my mouth and singing that funny birthday song he made up." "You can't know that. At least go check." "But-" Sally raised an eyebrow, meaning that there was to be no further argument or discussion of the matter. Percy hopped down from the window seat and stomped childishly to the door. "Getting an attitude won't change my mind Percy." His mother called as he (gently) slammed the door. Percy stepped out into the midday sun and blocked the light from scorching his eyes. It was hot. Even for Maine. Percy sighed and began his trudge to Grover's house. His friend Grover was a fun boy. He liked to pretend that he couldn't do anything (like running) but in reality he was just lazy sometimes. He and Percy had met in preschool when Percy was allowed access to glue and things got...messy. Grover helped keep him out of trouble when he could and the only time that he and Percy weren't stuck together like glue, was when Grover's parents took him on vacation every summer. They usually did come back around this time so if Grover was home, Percy wouldn't have been surprised. He just didn't feel like going outside. What if his dad came home while he was gone? He'd be missing valuable dad time. Not that he didn't like Grover but he always saw Grover. He was a constant. Just like the constant lack of presence of Percy's dad, Poseidon. The man was never home. Always on his fishing trips to earn extra money. Percy liked money but he also wanted his dad to come home. Percy walked up the driveway of Grover's house and instantly felt like something bad was about to happen. He felt it in his gut, his body saying 'turn back now.' So of course he kept going. Percy knocked on the door and was a mix of unsurprised and disappointed that no one answered. He was about to walk away and go home when he noticed it. Broken glass. On the side if the house where the kitchen window always was. "What in the-?" Percy crept slowly around the side of the house, keeping low just in case, questions quickly filling his head. We're they being robbed? Had they already been robbed? Maybe Grover just broke the window playing baseball? Percy knew the last one was unlikely as Grover didn't own a baseball. But he wished that that was what happened. Anything but what he saw when he looked through the broken window. Grover was home alright. He was also dead. Covered in blood and bite marks on the kitchen floor. A little further away was his father, in the hall in the same condition. Dead with bite marks. Grover's mother was leaning against the wall whimpering. And she wasn't alone. Something..no someone was biting savagely into her throat and she screamed in pain. A bloodied hand came up in a flash of movement to muffle it and Grover's mother shook with fear. Percy could hear her whimpering, "Please. Please. Please. Stop. Let me go. Please.' "I'm sorry." The person said as they removed their mouth from her neck, revealing sharp..were those fangs? Those were fangs. Oh God. "I don't want to do this. But I'm so hungry. And you smelled delicious. All of you. Don't worry. It'll be over soon." "Over?" The woman weeped. "You're going to kill me?" "I'm sorry." Was all the person said before those fangs were back in Mrs. Underwood's throat. Percy could only watch as she was drained. Bled dry by this...This thing. When he saw her eyes glaze over, then he freaked out. "Mrs. Underwood?" Suddenly a pair of bright red eyes were cast upon him. Percy flattened himself against the house. But he knew he'd been seen. Whatever he'd just witnessed, wasn't suppose to be found out. He knew that much. So he ran. Past the ice cream man, past the house with no children, through yards and back ways that he knew to get home quicker. He had just made it into view of his house when he was tackled. "You're a fast little human aren't you?" A girl's voice croaked in his ear as he was dragged into an empty alley. Percy fought the hands- those bloody hands on his body, but it was no use. Whatever this thing..this person was, she was strong. And fast. "Don't struggle." The girl said. "It won't help. I'm at least 20 times stronger than you. I could snap your bones faster than you can count to to 1. I just want to ask you a question." She plopped Percy on the ground and pressed a foot painfully into his stomach when he tried to scramble away. Percy gulped as she knelt down so she could look into his eyes. Blood red met sea green and then she spoke. "What did you see?" Percy blinked at the simplicity of the question. But he couldn't answer it. His mouth wouldn't make any noise. He just sat there gaping like a fish out if water. The girl sighed and turned Percy's chin so their eyes met again. Suddenly they were glowing a light blue. His favorite color. The light shade brought back memories of his father holding him in his room and sappy birthday parties and warm hugs during thunderstorms. Then he felt his body relax. The girl in front of him changed into his mother. He smiled. His mother would never hurt him. "Hi mommy." He said as if he were 7 and not 17. His mother smiled back. "Listen Percy, I need you to do something for me." "Tell me the truth okay? All of it." "Okay." "You saw something today didn't you?" Percy nodded. "What did you see today Percy?" Percy's smile faded. "I saw this monster at Grover's house. She was eating Mrs. Underwood. And Grover and his dad were already dead." His mother frowned. "So you did see." She said, voice uncharacteristically dark. Suddenly, his mother was gone, replaced by a pair of red eyes. "What did you do to my mother?" Percy scowled as he struggled against the hands holding his wrists. "Don't worry. Your mother will be safe. You on the other hand..." The girl smiled evilly. "I really am sorry about this. But children can't keep a secret to save their lives. I'm afraid I have to kill you." Percy's eyes widened and he thrashed about screaming. "Help! Help she wants to kill me! She wants to- mmph mmmph!" Percy thrashed some more as his mouth was covered. He tasted the metallic taste of blood seep into his mouth and coat his tongue as the girl's finger found its way past his lips. He felt breath on his neck and clenched his eyes closed when he heard the woman take a deep breath. Smelling him. She sighed and Percy flinched. "I guess it won't be a waste. You smell delicious. And I am still kind of hungry. This shouldn't hurt all that much. Not unless you keep thrashing like that. So sit still." For some reason, Percy obeyed. Maybe he thought that if he listened she wouldn't kill him. Maybe he'd given up. But he knew he was done for. So he braced himself as the woman opened her mouth and dove in. It hurt. Like having a hot branding iron shoved through his skin. But somehow he didn't thrash or flinch. Instead he stayed perfectly still. He just barely moved when he felt his blood being pulled from his body. The girl pulled back and frowned. "Hmm. I would've thought you would have screamed by now. You're a strong one aren't you?" She went back to Percy's throat, teeth digging in even deeper. Again he bit his tongue to avoid letting out the shrieks of pain that threatened to escape. He flinched again when he felt more blood being pulled out and his vision got cloudy. Another painful pull. Where was he? And another. What was he doing here? The girl pulled back again and this time she grinned, giving Percy quite the unpleasant view. "Amazing." She said. "You barely even flinch. Perhaps I won't kill you. I could use someone as durable as you. A bodyguard if sorts. Or a slave. Maybe..." She liked her lips and sat back on her heels with a thoughtful expression. "Of course you'd have to survive the change. And learn to control your thirst. But once that's done you'll be very promising as a newborn. Maybe even better than my last." She laughed and leaned forward. "So it's settled then. In exchange for me saving your life and giving you immortality, you will become my servant. Deal?" She held out her hand and Percy gulped. What did she mean? She wouldn't kill him? Or was she lying to get him into a false sense of security? Whatever the case, if there was still a chance that he would live, that he would get to go home and see his mother again, he'd take it. Slowly, he reached his hand out and slid it into hers. The girl shook it firmly, almost too tight. Then her hand was gone. Percy watched daily as she took out a blade and clenched her teeth. "I hate this part." She said before the steel sliced through her skin, leaving a little red line across pale white. She knelt in front of Percy and cradled his head against her body. "You're lucky kid. The first human I've saved in 200 years. You'd better be of good use to me." Then the metallic taste of blood was in his mouth. It burned like nobody's business. As if he was being drowned in acid, boiling in a volcano, and pouring lemon juice on a big paper cut at the same time. And it wasn't just in one place either. No. It was everywhere. Every molecule of his being was getting fried. His body jerked and thrashed without his permission and he could hear his bones cracking and then mending themselves. There was so much pain. So much agony. 'Please. Let it go away.' He prayed when the agony only got worse. Somewhere in the haze of pain, Percy heard a voice. A woman. "Oh my God! Is he okay?" "He's fine." A girl's voice. "He's does this a lot. Seizure. It's minor. It'll pass." "He doesn't need to go to the hospital?" "No. I assure you. He'll be fine in a few minutes. Really this is a frequent thing." "Can I at least drive you 2 home? There's no way your parents will be okay with this. I'll take you 2 home." The last thing Percy heard was the other woman saying that he didn't need medical attention or a ride, before everything goes black. When Percy wakes up, the first thing he notices is how distinct everything is. Everything he looks at is crystal clear. He can see the fibers of the worn gray carpet if he tries hard enough and the streaks on the window were as plain as the nose on his face. And speaking of nod me what was that smell? Like rotting garage on a bed of dog feces and a ton of piss. Percy sat up and looked around. Where was he? His house didn't have a painting of a tree. Or a stark white carpet. (Unless his mom had done some serious shopping while he was out.) He could hear voices from somewhere below him. A man and a girl. Arguing. "Why can't I go see him? I'm the one who changed him." The girl hissed. "Without his permission. Drew you know we only change those who ask to be changed. And you can't see him for other reason as well." The man's voice said back. "Which is?" The girl sounded annoyed. "You killed 3 defenseless humans. For no reason. You weren't hungry therefore you had no reason to attack. Nor did you have any reason to attack that boy." "He saw me!" The girl hissed again. "If you hadn't been there in the first place, he wouldn't have seen you and we wouldn't be in this mess. I hate to this to you, but your actions give me no choice. Drew Tanaka. You are hereby grounded. You are not permitted to leave this house or use your powers for the next month. Go to your room." The girl shrieked. "Chiron! That's so not fair! I make one mistake and-" The man interrupted. "One mistake? Drew this is the 5th mistake you've made in the last 2 weeks. First it was the car accident. Then you tried to drown a child-" "She started it." "-then you destroyed half the house arguing with Piper. May I continue?" "No." The girl snapped. "Then go to your room." "Yes Chiron." There were footsteps and then a door opened. Percy's he whipped around and he found himself staring at a middle aged man. "Who're you?" Percy asked. The man smiled kindly. "I realize that you have many questions about what has happened. And I would love to answer them. And I will. But first, you need to sate your thirst. Follow me." When Percy didn't move, the man reached for him. Percy flinched and felt a hard surface behind his back. When had he moved across the room? The man chuckled as if Percy were a child just learning to walk. "There's no need to be afraid. No one will hurt you. My name is Chiron. I am here to help. What is your name? " " Percy. What happened to me? Why am I here? What do you mean help me? Help me with what?" Percy didn't miss a beat and started in on the questions. "What is going on?" The man called Chiron raised his hands and Percy calmed himself. "Relax son. All of you questions will get answers soon enough. But for now, you must feed. Your throat hurts doesn't it?" Percy groaned as his throat started to burn. His stomach felt empty, as though he hadn't eaten in days. "So hungry." Chiron smiled."Follow me. I can fix that." Percy didn't know what to do. Should he stay and demand answers? Or should he follow Chiron? The increasing burn in his throat and stomach answered for him and he raced after Chiron. "So I'm a vampire now?" Percy said shakily after wiping blood from his lips. Chiron nodded and handed Percy another bag. "That is correct." "And I need blood to survive?" "Right again." "How would I do that?" Percy frowned. Chiron's eyes sparkled. "Well. Either you go hunting and kill on your own or you can come here for your blood." "Come...here? Why would I come here? I mean I don't want to kill anyone. But why here?" "We are in partnership with the local clinic. The owner is a good friend of mine and donates blood to us when they don't need it. No one gets hurt and there is no need to kill anyone. A wonderful compromise if you ask me." Percy frowned at that. He didn't want anything to do with this world. With this man. He just wanted to go home. His mother would be worried. How much time had passed since he'd been here? Would she have called the police already? Most likely. She had a habit of being overly protective. "How long have I been here?" Chiron checked his watch and Percy noticed that the hands weren't moving. "Well Luke brought you in about 6 hours ago. And we've been here for 45 minutes. So you've been here for 6 hours and 45 minutes." It took Percy a minute to process that. And when he did his mind went blank. Then his brain went into nuclear reactor meltdown mode. "I've been here for almost 7 hours? Are you kidding me? If this is a joke-" "I assure you it is not a joke. The changing process takes time and you needed to fully recover." Percy groaned and slapped his forehead. "Mom is going to have my head for this. And dad's probably come home and gone back by now." "I suppose you would like to be heading back now." Chiron said, just as polite as ever. Percy nodded in appreciation for the man's understanding. "Yes." Chiron nodded and stood from his seat. "Follow me then." \- -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "What is this place?" Percy asked as he did his best to keep pace with Chiron. The man looked back at him and smiled gently. "This is Blackwood Manor. It used to be an asylum for the criminally insane. But the place got old so the owner moved and left his place here. I bought it about 50 years ago and renovated it. Now it's an asylum for vampires. Any immortal children of the night who need a home are welcome here any time." Percy raised an eyebrow. "So it's like a group home or something?" "I suppose." The silence that spread between them was getting uncomfortable so Percy tried talking again. "What do I do after this?" Chiron frowned as he turned a corridor. "What do you mean?" "Well, what's going to happen after this? Do I just go on living my life like I'm not a vampire?" Percy asked. "If you wish to avoid trouble, yes." Chiron answered. "You can drop by anytime if you need blood. And don't stay away too long. Bad things happen when a vampire gets too hungry." "Like what?" Percy said even though he knew he wouldn't like the answer. "You'll go into a frenzy and basically attack any human in sight. So I'd suggest you come back." Percy nodded and walked out the door that Chiron held open for him. Percy couldn't take it anymore. He hid under his covers while his mother knocked relentlessly on his door. "Percy. Let me in. I know you feel bad about Grover but you have to come out some time." Percy shook his head. He hadn't locked himself in his room because of Grover. Sure he missed his friend and if it wasn't for the lava in his neck he'd be sobbing about that. But it had been resolved. Grover's death had been reviewed as a robbery gone wrong. The robber was 'still at large' and the police were on the hunt for him. The It had all worked itself out. That wasn't why Percy had stayed in his room all day. He was here because his mother was slowly killing him. He could smell her even now. She smelled of the sea and chocolate candy from the shop that she worked at. He knew that she got too close he'd snap. He'd already almost attacked her at dinner last night. "I'm fine mom. Just...go to work. I'll be okay." He chocked because her scent was coming through the door and suffocating him. "Are you sure? I could call off if you want me to. Carla could take over and-" Percy cut her off. "No! I'm fine mom. Go to work. Trust me." He desperately prayed that his plea would work. Luck seemed to be on his side because his mother sighed. "Okay. I guess I'll see you at 8. Can I have a hug?" Percy groaned inwardly. If he got close, that smell would kill him. But this was his mother. So he unwrapped himself from his blankets and opened the door. The smell hit him head on and he doubled over. "Percy?" His mother called. He felt her fingers touch his forehead and growled. He could smell it. 'Take her.' His brain said slyly. 'It'd be so easy.' "Easy." He said. "What'd be easy Percy?" His mother asked. Percy looked up at her just as everything fell into a red haze. He had no control anymore. All he knew was hunger and food. Before he knew what he was doing, he had pounced. "Percy. Percy wake up." Percy's eyes flashed open lazily to reveal a familiar face. "Chiron." He grinned. "What are you doing-?" Then Percy smelled it. Blood. Sweet and silky. And it was coming from him. He looked at his hands and flinched. They were covered in red. "W- what happened? What are you doing here?" Chiron looked sadly at him. "I'm sorry son." "Sorry for what? I don't understand. What's going on?" Chiron looked at the ground. All around them was a puddle of dried blood. And his mother's work vest. Percy frowned. "What is mom doing here? She's supposed to be at work." "She never made it to wok Percy. This is her blood." Percy froze. "This is her blood?" He looked at his hands. "And this-?" Chiron nodded. "I'm sorry Percy." "I- I killed my mom?" Percy said, eyes wide, unbelieving. Chiron nodded again and Percy went numb. He didn't remember what he did after that. Didn't know that he had lost it and gone on a rampage until Chiron told him. All he knew was that his mother was gone. And it was all his fault.


	8. Neeks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is really basically just some filler fluff. I'm giving these two a day to enjoy themselves. (Mostly because I can't come up with anything bad to happen.) So enjoy the happiness while you can.

"Nico pass!"

Nico did as his coach said and groaned in anguish when the person he'd passed the ball to didn't get the memo.  
"Really Carter?"

The girl shrugged, her poofy ponytail bouncing as she did. "Sorry. I didn't think you were passing it to me."  
Nico raised an eyebrow at that. "Seriously?" He sighed. "Because I yelled 'Carter' like 4 times before I kicked it."

"I didn't hear you."

"Why not?"

Carter grinned devilishly and Nico knew he'd made a mistake in asking that. "I was just wondering how long your boyfriend would eye fuck you until you noticed." Nico shivered when he realized that Carter was right. He hadn't noticed it during practice because he'd been to focused on running laps and doing drills. But now that practice was coming to an end and things were winding down, he felt it. That tickle of his spine that told him he was being watched. He turned to face the bleachers and found sea green eyes staring at him with an intensity he never knew existed. He waved and Percy smiled- warm grin not at all matching the hunger in his eyes. "Practice is over. So you can stop staring and come over here." He muttered, knowing that Percy could hear him even from this distance. Over the last 2 weeks, Nico had become rather acquainted with Percy's vampire tendencies. He made frequents visits to Percy's house and met quite a few of Percy's family. He didn't care when Percy dug his nose into his neck and took deep breaths while he did his homework. He didn't feel bothered when Percy would send casual glances at him from across the room in the one class who's teacher Percy couldn't convince. And he didn't even flinch when he felt pieces of Percy's inner thoughts bounce into his own head. (Although, he did scowl when he overheard something perverted.) Percy was by his side faster than what should have been humanly possible and Nico really hoped that he hadn't used his speed. But that thought cleared away as soon as Percy's nose was digging it's way into the nape of his neck. "Ready to go?" Percy asked, voice deep and muffled while his arms twined themselves around Nicos waist. Nico shugged. "I don't know. Lemme check." Then he yelled to Carter- who was trying to juggle a soccer ball with her foot. "Carter! Are we done yet?" "Yeah!" Carter yelled back, dropping the ball and picking up her bag before she jogged over to Nico. "Yeah. We're done. So you and your boy toy can stop with the lovey dove crap and go home." Nico fumed. "He's not my boy toy." "Then why is he sniffing you like a horny dog?" Nico stiffened and sent silent vines to Percy to knock it off. (He ignored the thoughts of dismay and childish pout that Percy sent him as he did so.) "And what the hell is a boy toy in the first place?" Nico scowled. "Oh you know-" Carter said, probably enjoying this if the grin on her face said anything about it. "A friend with benefits. Cuddle buddy. Possibly father of your children." Nico paled. "First of all, I'm a virgin." He seethed. "Second of all, guys can't get pregnant. And third of all, I will kill you." Cater snickered and skipped away to the red sedan that was waiting for her. Nico groaned and Percy chuckled. "I like her. She's very-" "Annoying?" Nico offered. "Pestering, insufferable, delusional, insane?" "Enthusiastic." Percy smiled warmly. Nico rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Let's go." Percy chuckles and turns, back fully visable, arms placed to catch Nico if he jumps on. Which he won't. "Oh no." Nico says, nose scrunching up in distaste. "I already told you. I'm not doing that again unless it's life or death." Percy chuckled again. "Relax. I won't use my super speed. We're in public after all. I'm just carrying you to your house." Nico gaped, "Percy. That's a pretty long walk. Percy smirked. "Then I guess you'd better hop on so we can get going." Nico scowled and climbed on Percy's back. "Don't go too fast okay? I'm pretty sure I threw up my entire stomach the last time." Percy nods and then they're off. Nico's not sure how long it takes for Percy to walk to his house. But by the time they get there, his legs are so numb that they shake when he steps off and he lands on the ground instead of on his feet, with an "Ommph." Percy doesn't even make an attempt to stifle his laughter. It starts as a light chuckle, but when he sees Nico's bewildered face, he loses it just as his hand was about to knock on Nico's front door. "It's not funny you ass." Nico hisses, completely disregarding the fact that he's in front of his own house. Percy doesn't stop laughing. In fact he only laughs harder at Nico's anger. Then Nico's suddenly laughing along with him because he can't believe he was dumb enough to fall off the way he had. By the time their fit has died down, Nico's stomach hurts and his sister is peering down at him, eyebrows raised over golden eyes. "Well you two are having fun aren't you?" She inquires as Nico stands and brushes the dirt off of his clothes. "Sorry." He says knowing that at this time she was probably doing homework and Percy didn't laugh quietly at all. Hazel shrugs and invites them in, giving Percy a skeptical glance then giving Nico a pointed look. He holds out his hands signaling that he'll tell her later. She rolls her eyes and Nico has to smile at the fact that they can have a full fledged conversation without saying a word. He turns back to Percy and introduces him. "Percy this is my sister Hazel. Haze. Meet Percy, my..." He stutters for a while because he's not exactly sure what to call Percy. Does being bonded to a vampire make him your boyfriend? He doesn't know, but he's glad when Percy takes over for him. "Friend." He says. "I'm Nico's friend. It's nice to meet you Hazel. I can see where you got your name from. Your eyes are beautiful." Nico can't tell but he's pretty sure that his sister blushes. "Thanks." She says before she points to the kitchen. "Our mom will want to meet you if you're Nico's friend." Percy nods and starts off toward the kitchen. He frowns at Nico. "I thought you said she was your stepmom." "She is." Nico says, ignoring the way his stomach twists. Persephone is absolutely delighted to meet Percy. Even more so when he compliments her. The 2 of them talk while Nico rushes upstairs to shed his soccer practice clothes and take a shower. When he comes back downstairs, he catches a tidbit of their conversation. "-stay for dinner. I'm making chicken alfredo." Persephone says. "Sure." Percy says, voice a little too innocent sounding for Nico's own good. "I'm sure anything you make will be delicious." Persephone giggles and Nico decides it's time to barge in. He heads straight for the fridge and after snatching the last apple in the drawer, takes a bite of it. "So what's going on?" "I've invited your friend over for dinner." Persephone says excitedly. Nico takes another bite of apple. "Are you sure that's a good idea? Dad and I haven't really made up yet. I don't think he'll be too happy about me having a friend over if he's still mad at me." He says, mouth full. Persephone rolls her eyes and scoffs. "It's not his decision. He's not the one making dinner so he'll have to deal with it. The invitation isn't his to give out or take back. Percy's coming to dinner whether he likes it or not." Nico smiles. That's one thing he like about his stepmother. Her rebellious spirit. You tell her to do one thing and she does the other. She was almost like him in that sort. Percy stands and thanks Persephone for the invitation. Then he looks at Nico. "What should we do until then?" Nico shrugs. "Well we do have to study for that math test." Percy cringes and Persephone giggles again. "Yay. Math tests." Nico rolls his eyes and makes Percy follow him upstairs. (Ignoring Persephone's catcalls of "Don't make too much noise boys." Because he's in high school and he knows an innuendo when he hears one. Nico can't help the laugh that comes out when Percy flops onto his bed face first the second they cross the threshold to his room. "So. Much. Nico." The vampire practically moans. "What'cha doing there Percy?" Nico asks. Percy rolls over and wrinkles his nose. "What's it look like? I'm smelling your bed." Nico rolled his eyes and turned to pick up his book bag from the corner. "I know what you're doing. But why?" Another nose wrinkle from Percy as he rolls over to answer. "Because no matter how much I like your stepmom. And no offense to her, but she smells horrible." "How is that not offensive?" Nico said. "Because it's not her fault. I'm sure your stepmom does as much as she can to not smell bad. Plenty of hygiene and soap. But she can't cover her natural mundane scent. It's encoded in her genome. She can't help it." Percy looked at Nico blandly then frowned when he saw the binder he was holding. "Wait. When you said we were going to study, you weren't kidding?" "Of course not. I suck at math and I need to get at least a C to play in the finals. And... Please my dad. But you and I both know that soccer is more important. So..." Percy pouted. "But I don't wanna study." "You don't have to. You're great at math." "But I suck at language arts." Nico frowned. "Language arts? How can you be bad at english when you speak the language?" "Because I have dyslexia." "Oh." Nico said, effectively and awkwardly ending the conversation. He plopped down on the bed as Percy rolled back over and continued sniffing the pillows. It went on like that for a while; Nico cramming math facts and emotions into his already filled brain while Percy inhaled the fabric of his pillows. Nico didn't know when the question struck him. For a while he let it be, hanging in his head until he finished studying. But eventually, like it always did, the new idea erased the progress he'd made until he was itching to ask. So he did. "Can you even eat regular food?" He asked, extremely confused because he didn't know and annoyed that he'd gotten distracted. Again. Percy sat up with a thoughtful look on his face. "Yeah." He said after a moment of thought. "I can eat human food." "But isn't blood your main food source?" "Well yeah.' Percy admitted. "But most of us miss the good old human stuff. I eat pizza whenever I can get my hands on it and even Annabeth sneaks a Twinkie every now and then. It's not as filling or satisfying as blood. But our bodies can handle it and since our bodies don't change all that much, we don't gain any weight no matter how much human food we eat." "Cool." Nico said before he frowned. "Are you ever going to stop smelling my bed?"He asked when Percy laid back down. "When your stepmom calls us for dinner, I'll think about it. You may have to drag me out." Nico laughed and gave up on homework to lay down next to Percy. The vampire smelled of the shore and saltwater taffy and Nico found that he enjoyed the scent. He didn't know how long he just lay there, staring at the ceiling and getting lost in the quiet. And he didn't care. The silence wasn't awkward. It was comforting. Normal almost. Too normal to be exact l. So uneasily normal and peaceful that Nico wasn't surprised when Persephone ruined it by yelling, "Boys, dinner!" Nico shook Percy awake (how he'd fallen asleep Nico had no clue) and followed him downstairs to the dining room. The rest of his family was already there. Hades in the first seat, Hazel in the third and Persephone dishing out food for all of them. Nico caught the way his father watched Percy as he took the spot next to Nico. Nico knew that this dinner wouldn't go as his stepmom had planned. He knew she had wanted it to be serene and family-like, as if they were in a movie. But nothing ever went right in this house. "So." Hades started nonchalantly, as he chewed a piece of chicken. Nico flinched. Damn it. His dad was getting to business sooner than he'd expected. "Who's your friend Nico?" "That's Percy Jackson dear. I invited him for dinner. He's a friend of Nico's. And he has excellent manners. Right Percy?" Persephone answered, inadvertently saving Nico a lot of stammering. Percy swallowed a mouthful of noodles and nodded. "It's nice to meet you sir." Hade's mouth quirk ed and Nico fought the urge to scowl. He knew that face. That was his father's 'I'm going to tear you apart like a vulture and watch you squirm just for the hell of it' face. "It's nice to meet you as well Percy." The room passed into a moment of silence as Hades took another bite. Nico gladly did the same, getting a few mouthfuls in before his father spoke again. "May I ask what your intentions toward my son are?" This time the scowl won. Not that Nico had put up much of a fight. He let his father see just how unhappy he was with the situation. Of course Hades didn't stop, it was far too late for that. So Nico would tell him with his facial expressions that he wanted to punch the man. Percy looked confused. "I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean." "Intentions. What you plan on doing to my son, with my son. I won't hear any strange noises in my house at midnight will I?" Nico had made the mistake of taking a sip of juice right before his dad finished, and narrowly avoided choking. Percy noticed and sent him a concerned glance. Nico nodded showing that he was okay and Percy turned back to Hades. "If you're asking me if I plan on harming Nico in any way, the answer is no. I'd never hurt him. I'll protect him." Percy's voice was calm and quiet, as if he'd rehearsed that statement. Nico was starting to get the feeling that he had. After all Percy never offered to take him home before. Any other day, Nico would just go to Percy's house, do some homework, and get a ride from Annabeth in her Prius. Hades snorted. "Protect him? From what?" "Anything." Percy said, voice still calm even though Nico could practically see the annoyance coming from him. "Oh take a bullet for him with no problem." Several things happened in the moments after Percy said that. The smirk on Hade's face disappeared. Hazel choked on a piece of chicken, Persephone dropped her fork and Nico flinched. Not because of the statement. Tons of people said that they'd willingly take a bullet for someone. That didn't mean they meant it. But the way Percy was staring down Nico's dad; green eyes hardened, jaw set, expression completely serious, Nico knew that Percy wasn't exaggerating. He was serious. He would have taken a bullet for him. It took a moment for Hades to recover from that. "That's a pretty manly thing to say Percy. Are you sure you're not being a little hasty in saying something like that?" "Absolutely not." Percy answered quickly. "Nico's my best friend. I'd do anything for him. Anything." "And you've thought about this?" Hades asked, tone unbelieving. Nico caught the way Percy glanced at him. The way he seemed to smile with nothing more than his eyes. Suddenly he wasn't so tense. Let his dad interrogate Percy all he wanted. Hades couldn't run Percy away. He had a feeling that Percy wouldn't leave unless he did. "I don't need to think about it. I'd do it whether I was thinking or not. Nico's that important to me." Nico smirked at his dad. 'Ha.' He thought smugly. 'Make up a comeback for that.' Hades didn't have a comeback. Instead he sighed and scoffed. "Well. If you're that devoted to my son, I guess I have no choice. After all I'm guessing that I won't be able to get rid if you will I?" "Not unless you killed me sir." Percy smiled, making nick kick him under the table for even saying that because his dad could be pretty unpredictable when he wanted to be. Hades chuckled. "Then it's settled. Percy Jackson, welcome to the di Angelo family." "May God help you." Hazel and Nico muttered. _________________________________________________________ "Percy get off." Nico groaned as Percy only maneuvered his body even further onto his lap. Percy grunted and glanced up. "Why? You aren't doing anything. You're just reading a book." "It's hard to read with you cuddling my thighs like a teddy bear. And what if my dad sees?" Percy scowled. "You're only giving me more of a reason to stay put. I'd be happy to let your dad see me like this. I'd probably give him the bird. In fact I hope he walks in on us. Maybe that smirk would finally come off his face." Nico chuckled nervously. "Yeah he can be a little cold hearted sometimes." Percy scoffed. "No. That man is Satan. It was like he was trying to peel me apart and put me back together the way he wanted." "He does that a lot." Percy didn't seem to hear him cause he went right on talking. "And the way he was smirking at me. It was like he was trying to make me mess up." "But you didn't." Nico added, trying to get the conversation to a less angering subject. "He likes you. Or..he respects you. Or...maybe he just won't kill you or make you go away. Either way you did it." "Dang right I did." Percy grinned victoriously. "Did you see his face when I said I would take a bullet for you? You'd think he wasn't sure if I meant it." Nico didn't answer. He couldn't breathe. Percy had meant that? He would really take a bullet just to keep him safe? Before Nico had thought he was just joking. Or that maybe, just maybe, he wasn't kidding. But now that he knew... He couldn't handle it. "Are you sure you meant it?" He asked, gulping hard to clear the lump that had settled in his throat. Percy looked confused. "What do you mean?" "I mean are you really sure that you would take a bullet for me. That you would willingly put yourself in that much pain just to save me?" "Of course I would. And even if I didn't want to, I'd do it anyway. My first instinct would be to protect you. No matter what, you come first. Your safety and happiness are forever my responsibility. Why would you even ask something like that?" Nico shook his head. "No reason. I just wanted to make sure that you weren't joking." "I wasn't." Percy said, eyes holing something unfathomable. Then the look disappeared and Percy smiled. "But enough with the heavy. We need to talk about this stupid quiz on Tuesday." _________________________________________________________ "Dyslexia?" Nico asked, just to make sure that he'd heard right. Percy nodded miserably while he glared at the page in front of him. "Dyslexia." "But I thought vampires were like perfect." Percy shrugged, giving up in reading the page. "We are. Almost. But sometimes, the venom in our blood doesn't fully affect our mortal bodies. So while some vampires are completely perfect, others have...defects. Sort of." "I don't get it." Nico frowned. "Well... take me for example. I have dyslexia. Vampires are supposed to have perfect vision right?" Nico nodded and Percy continued. "I have dyslexia because I had it when I was human and when I was changed, the venom didn't spread the way it should have. I still have the vision of a hawk. I just can't read worth shit. Get it?" Nico quirked an eyebrow. "I think so. You have it because the venom didn't work right so you were left with the impairment from your time as a human...right?" Percy nodded and went back to the paper. "I'm never gonna pass this test. I can't even read the words right. Everything is just all switched and jumbled." Nico watched silently as Percy fought to read a sentence. Watched as his lips moved in attempts at mouthing the words to get them right. He wondered how he could help. Then it hit him. He remembered a girl in 5th grade who'd had dyslexia. She would get extremely upset when the teacher called on her to read aloud because she couldn't get the words right. After one particularly bad day when a substitute argued with her because she refused to read and was sent to the office for talking back, the teacher came up with a plan. If she couldn't read to herself, why not have someone read to her? And so the buddy system was established. Everyday of the week, a new student would be the girls partner for reading time. While the rest of the class read, those two would be off in a corner or in the hall reading together. Nico wondered if the same plan would work for Percy. He figured it wouldn't hurt to try. He scooted closer to Percy, letting his eyes wander the page for a second before he spoke. "Having some trouble there?" Percy grunted. "If by trouble you mean that I want to slap our english teacher, then yes. I'm having some serious trouble." Nico smiled and inched closer. "Lemme help." Percy scoffed. "I don't think you could help me." Nico persisted. "But I can. I've dealt with this before. This girl in one of my old classes had dyslexia. My classmates and I read to her instead of making her do it herself and she passed. I think the same thing could work for you." "You don't have to read to me. I'm not a 3 year old." Percy huffed. Nico rolled his eyes. "Of course not you idiot. Shut up and let me talk will you?" I was trying to say that maybe if I read to you, you might be able to follow along and figure this out." Percy frowned. "So you're gonna read to me? Is that it?" "Yeah basically." Nico shrugged. Percy sighed and scooted as close to Nico as he could get without invading Nico's personal space. "Read on." He said and Nico started. _________________________________________________________ Nico grabbed Percy's hand when he attempted to hop out the window of his room. When Percy frowned, Nico put his hand on his hip. "Hey. No vamp crap in front of my dad. In this house you're human. And humans don't jump out of two story windows. They walk out doors. So go and walk out the front door. My dad already doesn't like you. Don't give him any more reasons to be suspicious." Percy nodded and removed his body from the windowsill. "Front door it is then." "Thanks." Percy smiled and let Nico lead him down the stairs to the front door. Persephone found them the minute the door creaked open. "Oh Percy. Are you leaving?" Percy nodded. "Yes. We have a test tomorrow that I need to study for." He turned to Nico and grinned. "See ya tomorrow Neeks." Nico waved as Percy walked down the street. He ignored the way his stepmom was smiling at him like she knew something and walked back upstairs. He took a quick shower and threw on an old pair of pajamas before he settled into bed. Only when he was drifting into the planes of unconsciousness, did he hear the nickname that Percy had given him. Neeks. He guessed he could live with it.


	9. A Good Day Gone to Waste

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took me so long to update. I've been over my grandma's and she doesn't have wi-fi. (I don't even think she knows what it is.) Not to mention the fact that I have no idea where I'm going with this and am making most of this up as I go along. But thanks for being patient.

"We need to talk."

Percy cringed every time he heard those words. No matter who said it, it always meant trouble for him. And when Annabeth said it, the trouble only doubled.  
But Percy knew he didn't have much of a choice. Not with the way Annabeth was giving him the most motherly look in existence. Reluctantly, he followed her out of the game room and into the hallway. "What's going on?" "We have a problem." Percy sighed. "Don't we always?" "No." Annabeth said anxiously. "I mean a real problem. As in the council kind of problem." Percy flinched at the word 'council'. He hated those guys. According to legend, the council was made of the sons of the first vampire. They were deemed as high society gods. And by Percy's opinion, they were a bunch of douche bags. There was Octavian, the youngest and most annoying of the bunch. He had a bad habit of 'seeing the future' or some dumb shit. Next was the middle child, Zachiriah. He was fairly calm, for a middle child. To be honest, if he had to choose, Zachiriah was his favorite out of all the brothers. He rarely spoke and when he did, his voice was always calm. Finally, came the oldest. Midas. Boy he was a jackass if Percy had ever met one. He had an ability to look into someone's past and even alter their thoughts. And he loved using it. Percy, on the other hand, hated that. Hated the feeling of someone forcing their way into his head and moving stuff around. His head was chaotic enough on its own. It didn't need any help being more chaotic. Percy scoffed. "God I hate them." "Don't we all?" Annabeth agreed. "But this isn't just about them. This is about the festival. It's our covens turn to host the celebration." Percy paled. "By festival, you wouldn't happen to be talking about the Black Rose Festival would you?" "That's the one. And we have to plan it this year." Percy groaned. The Black Rose Festival was a 3 day long celebration of the first vampire, David Rose. Every year, a different coven was selected to host the festivities. And the festivities were in no way festive in Percy's opinion. David Rose had been a little homicidal. In his long lifetime, he'd probably gorged himself on enough people to fill New York City. The very fact that they even celebrated someone like that sickened Percy to his core. But if that wasn't enough to twist his stomach into knots, the way they celebrated did. Each vampire would pick 3 humans from the surrounding area and hypnotize them into coming to the mansion. They would be told that it was a party in their honor. When in reality, they would be nothing more than a meal. For 2 days, they would dance and shout and smile happily. But when the clock struck midnight on the third day, they would become nothing more than corpses added to the pile. Percy found the whole thing barbaric and disgusting. The smell of blood would be infused in the walls of his house for days. Weeks even. But the screams of the humans as they were eaten alive would be stuck in his head for years. And that's if he was lucky. Not to mention the fact that the vampires got to choose. Vampire chose their victims by scent. And if they got too close to Nico... If Nico smelled as good to them as he did to him... No. He wouldn't let himself think about that. He would figure it out. Somehow he had to find a way to get Nico out of the way. Out of the picture so there would be no chance of him being in danger. Percy ran his head through his hair. "How long do we have until-?" He didn't have to finish his sentence. Annabeth answered easily. "About 2 weeks. Possibly less if some of them decide to come early to get the best picks of humans. And that's not even all of it. We still have to talk about this whole Nico thing." Percy growled. "For the last time. Nico is completely human. And I'm not having this argument again. Let it go." "I know you don't wanna believe it but it's true. I mean think about it." Annabeth started, chasing after Percy as he walked away. "His last name is di Angelo. We know someone who has that last name." Percy spun around. "No. Maria lives in Venice. She hasn't been here for years." "That doesn't mean that she's not his mother." Annabeth yanked out her phone and shoved it in Percy's face. "I found this news article a from a few years ago. There was a fire. And Maria di Angelo was reported missing afterwards. They never found her and she was presumed dead. Read it." "Will this get you to leave me alone about this?" Percy scowled. "Probably not but you're still gonna read it." Percy snatched the phone and scrolled through the article. It took him a while to read through the whole thing with his dyslexia, but eventually he got through it. 'When Hades di Angelo picked his son up from school, he never imagined what would happen next. According to neighbors, the di Angelo residence caught on fire with Maria and Bianca di Angelo still inside. The fire was apparently started by an oven left on too long. Hades and his son Nico were forced to relocate while their home was rebuilt. And while no one was hurt, Maria and Bianca's bodies were never recovered. Despite this, witnesses of the event recall seeing two figures fleeing from the scene of the tragedy. As of now, Hades and Nico are staying in a hotel and the neighborhood is recovering from this tragic event.' Percy frowned. "Okay. So there was a fire and Maria and her daughter were never found. So what?" "Um you're missing the fact that Maria is Nico's mother." Annabeth said. She grabbed her phone from Percy's hand and made her 'I'm right and you know it' face. Percy frowned. "Okay. So what if I do believe that Nico is half vampire? What are we going to do about it?" Annabeth sighed. "I have no idea. But I'm sure we'll think of something. Until then, stay close to him. Don't let him out of your sight." "What about the festival?" Annabeth cocks an eyebrow. "No offense Percy but you kind of suck at planning formal events. I'll take care of everything and you can pay me back later." Percy smiles at her, any irritation at the fact that she still believes that Nico's not human, gone. Thank God for Annabeth. _________________________________________________________ Thank God for dark movie theaters. Otherwise, Nico's sure that he and Percy would have been kicked out of the movie by now. Or at least Percy. The vampire had completely abandoned any thought of watching the action film, settling instead for burying his face into Nico's neck and breathing as deep as he can. Nico feels that familiar tug in his gut; the same one he received when Percy hit his first hunger curve, although much less painful. With every breath Percy takes, the tugging gets stronger and by the end of the movie, he feels like he's on a roller coaster going down that first drop. The feeling isn't as painful as it is unwelcome and Nico really needs Percy to knock it off so he can think straight. "I'm hungry." Percy says, as they emerge from the theater, Nico shivering because once again he's underestimated this weather sent from hell. "We could grab a pizza." Nico suggests, already knowing that that's not the kind of 'hungry' Percy is talking about. "Not like that." Percy says, confirming his suspicions and Nico gulps because Percy's staring at him like he plans on devouring him whole. "We'll go to your place and you drink a bag there." He says, since he has nowhere else to be on a Saturday. Percy shakes his head. "I'm all out." When Nico gapes at him with a look that screams accusation, he shrugs. "I get hungry a lot faster now. They were only going to last so long." "Then we can get Annabeth to take some more." "Actually we can't." Percy says, voice sounding deeper than Nico remembers. "Annie is in class right now. She had to redo one since she bombed the last finals test. Her teacher gave her a chance to redo the test and she took it so we're on our own." Nico gulps again because Percy has stopped making his usual eye contact with him, eyes locked onto his throat instead. "So.." Nico starts but doesn't finish because his mouth refuses to move anymore and his brain has stopped cooperating at the thought of Percy biting him. He's felt that before. The feeling of someone biting into his flesh and stealing his blood against his wishes. He knows that this doesn't qualify as stealing, as he's willingly giving Percy his blood despite his fear. But that doesn't mean that he can shake the feeling from his head. He's felt that searing pain before, like he was being burned alive, the burn spreading through his body threatening to rip him apart with the intensity. Suddenly, he's not so sure that he wants to do this. He wants to wait for Annabeth to get back from class so she can just take his blood. Percy sees his fear and smiles weakly, as if he can see the vivid memory that Nico's playing in his mind. Then again he probably can, since they can read each other's minds. "It's okay." He says calmly. Nico nods shakily and let's Percy guide him to the bus stop, since he's still living up to his promise; no super speed unless his life depends on it. Percy closes the door behind him and he stares at the room around him. "Where are we?" "My room." Percy answers, throwing off his jacket as Nico flops on the bed and starts gliding his hands against the silk sheets. "So how is this supposed to go? Is there some kind of code of conduct I should have or something? Should I get naked or something? Make it a sacrificial ritual." Percy chuckles darkly, sending shivers down Nico's spine. "No. Nothing so barbaric. But it would be smart to move your shirt collar. This might get a little messy." Nico gulped, the fear getting to him again. Again Percy notices and sit down beside him, hands gliding up Nico's arms calmly. "Don't worry. It won't hurt like it did before. That was involuntarily, so the pain was expected. But since this is your choice, it'll barely hurt." Nico nodded, pulse still racing. 'It'll be okay. It'll be okay.' He chanted in his head repeatedly. He moved his collar away from his throat and clenched his eyes tight as Percy leaned in and took a deep quick breath. He's getting fidgety now, impatient. "Percy." He says, hating how weak his voice sounds. "Can you hurry up? You know- before I change my mind?" He thinks he feels Percy nod, his bangs brushing against his skin. But then everything else be om comes a blur as something sharp makes itself known in Nico's skin. He's relieved at the fact that it doesn't hurt. And then he's annoyed at his relief. Of course Percy won't hurt him. In fact, the feeling is quite the opposite. He feels a twinge of pain, barely a sliver. But then the pain becomes something different. Not exactly pleasure, but not a burning pain either. If he thinks about it, it feels more like comfort. Like sitting in front of a fireplace with a cup of hot cocoa while it snows outside. Or sitting in a park on a hot day, munching on a popsicle and watching the kids chase each other around. Yes that's it. Comfort. He leans into Percy's touch, and hums with satisfaction. He watches the summer light filter through the windows, the curtains turning the light a beautiful shade of blue. Watches the little motes of dust swim around in the light. His body starts to hum and he finds that he's getting a little sleepy. Not light headed like he would be if Percy was taking too much blood. But incredibly sleepy. His eyes get a little heavier, and his head tilts onto Percy's as he gets used to the feeling of his blood being pulled from his body. By the time Percy pulls away completely, Nico's drifted off a total of 3 times and he's so close to doing so again. He manages to fight it though, instead asking Percy sleepily how he feels. "Full." Percy says. "And sleepy." The last word is said with a yawn and Nico yawns as well. "Do you think your dad would let you stay here tonight?" Percy asks, laying down lazily. "Dunno. Why?" "I'm not sure I'm gonna be able to get to your house without falling asleep and I don't wanna drop you on the way there." Nico nods, before he pulls out his phone and lazily calls his dad. When Hades answers with a gruff "Hello", Nico asks permission, making sure to throw in a yawn or 2. "I guess." His father says sounding rather irritated. "Tell him to keep his hands to himself. " Nico glances at Percy- who's given up on fighting sleep and has passed out starfish style on his bed. "That won't be a problem." Nico says, holding back a laugh because he can see the drool sliding down Percy's face. He hangs up after a few more minutes of his dad asking weird- and rather embarrassing- questions about sex and sexual activities that he answers quickly and efficiently. Then he shrugs off his jacket and crawls- yes crawls because he's extremely sleepy and he's not about to do any other activity- over to Percy's side. For a moment, he lays there, watching Percy's sleeping face and wondering how he feels. Then his mind shifts -suddenly deciding that he isn't sleepy at all- and suddenly, he's thinking about Percy's abilities. First, super speed. He's experienced that first hand and although he doesn't like it, he supposes that it could come in handy if it needed it. Then, super strength. He's also seen that in action and the thought of someone being able to break concrete with someone else's skull scares him a little. And then there came the water control thing. He wondered how Percy had gotten that one. He'd once said that he had an extensive love of water and anything related to it. But did that mean that if Nico became a vampire, his live for something could become a special ability? He figure md that he would like that if it did. And finally, the mind reading. Percy had been in his head plenty of times- he knows because he felt it every time. But he's never tried it on Percy before. Suddenly he wants to do so and is trying to figure out the way to do it without feeling like an idiot for trying. But he does it anyway, projecting himself into Percy's head and suddenly he has it. He can hear Percy's thoughts. And the minute he does he has to resist a fit of laughter Percy sounds drunk in his head. He's mumbling stuff like "Nico." And "Sweet." And "So full." He chuckles and wipes the spit from Percy's face. Then, he smiles and let's himself drift into the planes of unconsciousness. _________________________________________________________ When Nico awakens, he doesn't even mind the arms heavily twined around his body in an almost protective fashion. He can feel Percy breathing against his back- he must have moved while Nico was sleeping- and can feel Percy's fingers gliding softly over his shirt. Percy knows he's awake and since there's no point in feigning sleep, he rolls over and smiles under his eyelashes. "Hey." He says, rubbing the gunk from the corners of his eyes. "Good morning." Percy hums happily and Nico laughs, to which Percy raises an eyebrow. "What?" Nico does his best to calm himself as he speaks. "We sound like a newlywed couple who just woke up after the best sex ever." He chuckles. Percy's eyes widen and then he's laughing. "Yeah. I guess we do." His body shakes with the force of his laughter and Nico laughs right along with him. Nico feels comfortably content right here. Wrapped in Percy's arms, laughing happily as if he were married. For a minute he wonders what it would be like to really be married. Would everyday be like this? Is it bad that he'd be willing to go any extent just to have a fraction of this for as little as a fleeting moment? Is it bad that he doesn't care what happens in the outside world as long as he can stay here forever? "Yes." Percy says, amused, and Nico grouches. "What did I say about being in my head without my permission?" "You were doing it last night." Nico freezes. "How did you-?" "The same way you know when I'm doing it. Something in my head feels weird, like some thing's there. And since nobody else can get in my head, I know it's you." "But you were sleep." Nico reasons. "That doesn't mean I didn't see you in my dream." Nico scoffs. "Don't know how you saw anything. You sounded highly intoxicated." Percy shrugs. "I was. A little. Your blood kind of has that sort of effect on me. I'm pretty sure that I could get high just from smelling you." He leans in and breathes, Nico rolling his eyes as he does so. Percy pulls back and let's out a sort of half- sigh, half- moan and laughs. "Yep. Definitely high." Nico laughs again but it's cut short by Percy's door slamming open and a small red headed girl barging in with a look of irritation on her face. "Rachel." Percy says, a little surprised. The red head- Rachel- grunts and looks Percy dead in the eyes. Then she glances at Nico before those eyes go back to Percy. "You're gonna wanna get him out of here. Like now." Percy sits up, interest peaked and Nico knows that his day is about to become another shitty one. "Why?" "Because Luke just showed up." Yep. Shit.


	10. Old Enemies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke. Even the name irritates him. Sends him into a barely controlled fit of rage that makes him see red for a few minutes while he attempts to calm himself down. But he does calm down. Nico's home now so there's no need to panic. He can do this. He will do this. And nothing is gonna stop him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep. I did it. I dropped a Luke bomb. Do I feel bad? A little. But it's worth it I swear.

Percy's up before he even realizes that his body is moving, mind instantly going into overdrive.  
He grabs Nico up as gently as he can and turns to Rachel. "Where is he?"

"Front entrance. But he wants to talk to you. And he says he can smell him from here." Rachel nods her head at Nico and Percy goes into an instinctive feral protection mode. He looks at Nico with apology on his eyes before he thrusts the boy into Rachel's arms.  
"Get him home. Fast."  
Nico frowns, seemingly already knowing how fast Percy means. But he still asks, "How fast are we talking here?"

"Supernaturally."  
Nico whines and Percy sends him a look that he hopes says 'I'm sorry' before Nico and Rachel disappear out the window. He reaches into Nico's mind and flinches at the amount of times Nico curses his name. Never mind that. He has a problem. A big problem.  
"Annie." He calls, knowing that she'd hear him even if he didn't scream but he's so wired that he can't make his voice go any quieter.

Annabeth is at his side in the blink of an eye, looking as conflicted as Percy feels. "I know." She says before he can explain.  
"What are we going to do?" Percy asks as he starts descending the stairs that lead to the entrance hall. Annabeth keeps his pace but doesn't answer, which let's Percy know that she has no clue.

 

Percy growls when he sees Luke standing against the wall as if he owns the place. But when Luke stands up straight and smiles at him, he growls even deeper.  
Luke. Even the name irritates him. Sends him into a barely controlled fit of rage that makes him see red for a few minutes while he attempts to calm himself down. But he does calm down. Nico's home now so there's no need to panic. He can do this. He will do this. 

He attempts to be cordial as he greets Luke, smiling as real as he can muster without getting sick to his stomach by doing so.  
"Percy my old friend." Luke grins as he pulls Percy into a hug. Percy smiles and let's Luke look him over.  
"You got a lot taller since I last saw you."

"I'm immortal Luke." Percy says, rolling his eyes at the old game they used to play before they were enemies. "I don't grow." Luke's smile doesn't waver and instead if frowning, he locks eyes with Annabeth and continues his 'happy family reunion' charade. "Annie!" He says, sounding way too much like a father who hasn't seen his daughter in years. Annabeth flinches at the name and Percy can tell that she's physically restraining herself from ripping his head off. Not that he would stop her. Not after what he did... Percy chooses to not focus on that, as doing so will ultimately result in someone being murdered at his house. Instead he asks the question that he and Annabeth are both thinking. "Why are you here so early? The festival doesn't start for another few weeks." Now, Luke stops smiling and blinks at Percy as if the answer should be obvious. Then that sickly sweet grin is back and he's throwing his arm around Annabeth's shoulders. "Simple. I wanted to see my old family." "Are you sure you didn't come to get first dibs on the humans here?" Annabeth says, ridding herself of the fake smiles and happy go lucky attitude in exchange for her regular no nonsense self. "There's that too." Luke says, smile still intact. "Speaking of humans-" He starts and Percy prepares himself for the worst. "That one you had in your room earlier smelled delicious. He isn't tied down is he?" Finally getting to the point. Percy stops with the fake smiles as well, growling instead. "Unfortunately he is tied down. To me. And if I even think you've been anywhere near him, I'll break your neck and the rest of your bones. Then, I'll let Annabeth take a shot at kicking your ass too. I'm sure she'd love to." Luke laughs, sounding more sadistic than happy. "Oh Perseus. How long are you going to hold a grudge against me? That was 20 years ago." "That's the thing about immortality Luke." Percy spits with a little extra venom because nobody calls him 'Perseus' unless they're family. And Luke isn't family. Not anymore. "Since I live forever, I can hold a grudge as long as I want to. And I'll never forgive you. Now why are you really here? And don't spout that bullshit about wanting to see family because no one here is your family." Luke chuckles darkly, and Percy finds it irritating that he used to find that sound attractive. "You know Percy, I travel all this way, and you treat me like dirt. That's not a way to treat a house guests is it? You're going to hurt my feelings." "It's how I treat unwanted ones. And you can take your feeling and shove them up your-" "No." Annabeth says, interrupting Percy before he can spit out an insult. "He's right Percy. No matter how unwanted he is-" She puts extra spite into the word 'unwanted'. "-he's a guest all the same. And as much as I hate to admit it, we have to treat him like one." Percy gapes at her while Luke grins victoriously as if he's won some kind of game. Annabeth calls for 2 young vampires and asks them to escort Luke to his room. The 2 young vamps- he believes their names are Kaia and Damien- nod, eyes flitting around nervously because the tension is evident at the moment, before they and Luke are gone. "What. The. Hell?" Percy grinds through his teeth because it's all he can do to not scream like a mad man. "Why are you defending him?" "I'm not." Annabeth says. "I'm just trying not to start a war. The last thing we need is more blood on our hands than we already have. We need to think tactfully and plan carefully right now. He knows about Nico. And is showing interest. Now is not the time to initiate mindless violence and trigger him into doing something that would put your mate, in danger. Believe me, I want him out of here as much as you do, but until this festival is over, we can't do shit about it. So please try and think before you act." Percy grunts. "I'm not good at thinking. That's you're strong suit. If you need me, I'll be in the yard, punching things and cursing my existence." He wisps away from Annabeth, not even wanting to look at her right now. He knows in the recesses of his head that she's right- she always is. But just because he knows it doesn't mean he has to like it. Still, he has to stay calm, for Nico. If he messes this up...Nico could lose his life, and Percy's not about to go through that pain. He reminds himself of that as he kicks harshly at a tree in his ginormous backyard. (There is an upside to being immortal. Plenty of time to make money and buy stuff.) He reminds himself of that as he glares at the sky with murderous intent. He only stops reminding himself if that when a voice behind him chuckles "Geez. What did that fluffy cloud do to you?" Percy's up like a springboard, ready to attack, only to realize a sixteenth of a second later that he overreacted. "Jason." He huffs, plopping back onto the ground as Jason sets himself gently next to him. "On edge?" The blonde asks, no amusement in his voice, only concern. Percy nods helplessly. "Wanna talk about it?" Percy shakes his head quickly and Jason laughs. "Okay. Wanna just sit here and gripe about life then?" And the flood gates open. Percy doesn't know what it is about Jason that makes him so trustworthy. But at the moment, he doesn't care because he can finally vent about this to someone who'll listen and agree with him. "Who does that asshole think he is?" Percy growls, mouth not even stopping because he needs to say this or he's afraid he'll explode. "Showing up at my house unannounced and uninvited, acting like he owns the place. Like he hasn't done anything wrong or torn me down in the process. Calling me his family. We're not family. The only thing we have in common is the fact that we're fucking immortal. And then he starts asking about Nico. Asking if he's 'tied down'. Of course he's tied down you jackass! Why would he be here if he wasn't? I swear if he lays so much as a breath on my Nico I'll rip him apart my damn self and personally escort him to hell. And then Annabeth tells me not to fight him. To 'think before you act'-" He does a mock impression of Annabeth's voice. "- when she knows damn well that I don't fucking think. Ever! And she can't even act like she doesn't wanna beat his ass as much as I do because I saw the way she glared at him. I'm not stupid! He thinks he can waltz his way in here? Sweet talk me again into doing what he wants? No! Not this time. I lost everything because of him and I've worked too damn hard to make this new family, this new home, for him to ruin it. If that selfish ass hat thinks he can just come onto my turf and fuck up my life, he's got another thing coming because I will fuck him up. I don't give a damn what Annabeth says. If he tries anything, he's dead. Dead! Screw the council, forget the festival, and to hell with being cautious. I'll fucking kill him!" The pond in the center of the yard explodes with water and he's breathing hard, rage finally out so he can see color now and not just red. Jason pats him on the back and let's him calm down a little before he speaks. "You know you can't kill him. And you know Annabeth is right. As much as you hate it, you need to think this through. Don't do anything rash. I understand that you hate this guy for whatever reason, and as your best friend, that automatically makes him my worst enemy, and if he tries anything, I'll help you kill him. But right now, we need to try to keep things calm and collected for as long as possible. You still need to plan for the festival and protect Nico. Now isn't the time for you to lose your head." "I know I know." Percy says. "But I just wanna-" He makes a choking motion in the air with his hands and shakes them like he's violently choking someone- preferably Luke. "-urgh." Jason laughs again and continues with the back rubbing. " I know the feeling. But do you think you can try to not-" He makes the same choking motion that Percy did and smiles. "-kill anyone?" "I'm not promising anything." Percy says. "I'm still hate the fact that he's here. But I can try." Jason claps him on the back and grins. "Good. Now let's talk about something that doesn't make you make the pond explode." And that's how they end up talking about Nico. Really it just Percy talking since Jason only met him once, but Jason has always been a good listener, throwing in comments like "Yeah that was funny" and "Oh dear God" just to let you know that he's not just tuning you out. Percy starts in on how good Nico is at soccer, any thought of Luke far from his mind because when Nico's in his head, nothing else matters. Percy's just getting around to how Nico's dad is a prick but his sister and stepmom are really nice when Piper comes out. "I see you two are talking about Percy's favorite new topic of conversation." She says, voice light and airy because she's Piper and that just makes sense. Percy doesn't even deny the fact that he may be obsessed with Nico a bit. Instead he lets Piper take over the conversation a bit, while he watches the clouds. He wishes that he'd brought a jacket out here with him because it's pretty cold and he is in no mood to go back inside. Although he does have homework that he needs to finish... The thought of homework makes him think about school and of course that brings his mind right back to Nico. And of course thinking of Nico makes him think of Luke and how interested he was about Nico. Percy realizes with resounding quickness that he needs help. If Luke was asking about Nico and even inquiring whether or not he was with someone, he was probably thinking of creating a bond with him. Or worse, picking him for the festival. Percy's not about to allow that to happen. But he doesn't know if he'll be able to fight Luke off if he makes a move. Before, he and Percy were evenly matched. But that was over 20 years ago. It was very possible that Luke had gotten stronger. He doesn't like it but he knows that if it comes down to a fight- which it likely will- he may need backup. And since Annabeth isn't in the most caring of moods right now, he needs someone else. "Piper." He says, interrupting her story telling session with Jason. She turns to him, brown eyes holding question. "Yeah?" "Can you two for a favor?"


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know. That last chapter was kind of short. I'm sorry. I really don't have an excuse for it. (Unless being straight up lazy counts as an excuse.) But I tried to make this chapter a little longer. And the cliffhanger? Yeah.. not really sorry about that. It'll come together soon enough.

'I'm gonna kill him.' Nico swears in his brain as he barely stops himself from barfing all over the red haired girl's- Rachel, he remembers when they narrowly avoid hitting a tree, her name is Rachel- back.  
'He's so dead.' He thinks as his stomach rises up into his throat because Rachel just sped up and oh, he needs to get off now.

He only stops thinking about murdering Percy when Rachel gently peels him off her back and sets him in his bed. She must have brought him in through his window. "Hey." He starts, turning over his body so he can see her clearly. "How did you know where I-?" And then he stops. She's gone. Of course she is.  
Nico doesn't let his mind dwell on that, instead focusing on staying awake to think. His numbing drowsiness fades away for now, letting his brain drift to the night before.

Never in his life had he felt so- he couldn't even find the words to describe it. Despite the fact that he had a set of razor sharp fangs in his neck, he had barely felt any pain. He shivered at the feeling of Percy's phantom hands on his waist, pulling in, rocking him gently, easing his mind. His breath hitches when he remembers how soft the sheets had felt against his clenched hands. Suddenly that amazing, toe warming comfort, is seeping into his skin, taking hold of him. He imagines Percy's arms around him, strong and firm, as he falls asleep.  
___________________________________

Warm.  
Nico feels warm. And it's not just on his body. It's whispering through his body, making his hair stand on end and his toes curl.  
His hand is clenching in something soft and fuzzy and even though the thing is moving, he holds on tightly because it's helping him keep his sanity.  
There's a blinding flash of white and he's screaming, hands scrabbling for something to get him through this because he's sure he's not going to survive anything this intense.

"Nico."  
His vision is back and he whimpers at the sight of Percy, beautiful, sweaty Percy. He's smiling, eyebrows raised, body shaking, as if he was barely controlling himself.  
"You okay?"  
Nico was better than okay. His knees felt weak and he couldn't talk. So he nodded instead.  
Percy nodded and his hips moved, grinding. Nico sighed shakily and dug his feet into the covers.  
"Percy." He breathed. "Hah..ngg."  
Percy chuckled. "You don't have to be so quiet. No one else is here. You can let it all out."  
Nico did just that. His breath failed him for a second, then it was back and he was keening. He was so close. So amazingly close to perfection that he could almost taste it.  
And then, there it was. That mind blowing pleasure that crept up his spine and left him paralyzed. His toes curled, and his head fell back into a pillow, exposing his neck. An action that Percy took for granted as he bit into the soft flushed flesh. That was it. The feather that sent him over the edge. His scream caught in his throat before it escaped and left him raw. He could feel Percy still moving, breathing hard. He froze and that warmth spread through his body again.  
Warm.  
Hot.  
Flames.  
His body felt scrubbed raw, like he was being erased and drawn a better, new version of himself. When his legs finally stopped trembling, and his mind stopped reeling, he found that he didn't want to think. He was content just laying there, covered in his happiness and continuing into his own little perfect slice of forever.  
_________________________

Nico wakes up feeling more drowsy then he was when he woke up. His mind is foggy and his limbs feel like jelly. For some reason, he feels a little warm, a little sweaty too. As if that dream was... No. It was just a dream. He shakes his head and flops back onto his pillow, considering the ups and downs of getting out of bed. Finally, he gives up and just changes into his pajamas and faces the fact that today is just a good old fashioned lazy day. "Nico! Wake up!" A female voice yells and Nico stirs, irritation flowing through his veins at the fact that someone wants him to move when he'd just decided not to do so. "Nico!" The voice yells again, this time louder and Nico groans, turning over and yelling an impatient "What?" "It snowed! Do you wanna come outside? Me and Frank wanna make some snowmen." Hazel called. Nico froze. Snow? This early? It was only November. Okay so maybe it was the time for snow but that didn't mean he had to like it. Nico barely had any sense of balance on his own feet. He was almost always falling on something or forgetting where he was going and slamming his face into doors. But snow? Snow was his worst enemy. With the crystal white miracle of snow came the devilish, evil creation that was ice. And Nico and ice didn't get along in any way. So he had reason to be weary when he answered. "I'll think about it." He said back to her as he rolled out of bed and opened his curtains. Oh God. No. Just no. He couldn't do it. When Hazel had said that it snowed, she wasn't kidding. The entirety of their street was covered in the soft white powder that glistened and sparkled in the early morning sunlight. His front lawn looked like something out of a Disney movie. There was snow everywhere. Icicles hung off every tree branch, melting and just looking perfect. The scene was so picturesque that any kid would be eager to throw on their poofy snowsuits, hats, gloves, and boots to get a taste of the perfection. Nico on the other hand would not. He would stay inside with his warm clothes and warm bed and watch his sister and her boyfriend make snowmen. He did not feel like being brutally beaten by the snow due to his lack of equilibrium. Hazel wouldn't be able to get him out there if she begged. 15 minutes later ******************** Nico growled as he wiped snow off his face, again. Frank was rolling around in the snow like a child yelling "Oh! I got you!" And Hazel was trying to control her giggling while she wrapped a scarf around her snowman. Nico smirked and wrapped his hands around a pile of snow, hands compacting the powder into a hard ball as he locked onto his target. "Hey! Ching Ling!" Nico yelled, not caring if someone found his old nickname for Frank offensive because he had wiped enough snow off of his face and clothes to bury the city of Arendale. Frank turned and saw the ball of snow in Nico's hand. His face went through 3 different phases in a matter of seconds. Confusion, realization, and then utter fear. His arms went up in defense and he laughed nervously. "Now hold on Nico. Don't take this too seriously. It was a prank. Harmless right?" Nico smirked evilly. "Harmless huh? You think hitting me in every part of my body with balls of snow is harmless?" He took a step forward and Frank took a step back. "Do you have any idea how cold I am?" Another step. "My ass feels like I should be Jack Frost." Frank looked like he wanted to run. "I'd like to return the favor." Nico bent his arm back, as far as he could go while Frank looked around for an escape route. 3... "Nico." Frank said. "C- calm down dude." 2... Nico smirked and Frank squeaked. "Hazel? Little help here?" Hazel didn't move. "You started it. I'm not about to let him hit me. He throws like a professional baseball player. He'd kill me." That only made Frank look more afraid. 1... Nico grinned, although he doubted that the glint in his eye- which was surely there- would make the smile appear very comforting. That's what he was going for. He wanted Frank to be so scared that he pissed his pants. Fire... Nico let it rip. He watched the ball of packed snow sail through the air, right into the path of Frank's face. It hit him head on, right between the eyes. Just one problem. It hit him too hard. Nico watched as Frank went down, hand covering his face. "Frank?" Nico stepped forward and stopped. His blood ran cold, and he felt sickened. Right beneath Frank's hands, dripping red on the crisp white snow. That couldn't be...He didn't throw the snowball that hard did he? But it was there, impossible not see because it was so vivid against the white. Hazel rushed to Frank's side and glanced at her brother. "How hard did you throw it?" Nico couldn't move. That wasn't him was it? He wasn't the one who made Frank bleed was he? He watched in fear stricken silence as another drop of blood dipped off of Frank's skin and fell to the ground in slow motion. Hazel's lips were moving and by the way she was throwing her hands around, it was important so Nico decided to pay attention. "-ome ice! And a rag." Nico nodded and took off for the house, slamming the door to both the freezer and the linen closet before he slammed the front door. He handed the ice to Hazel and watched as she asked Frank to move his hands. And then he couldn't breathe. The bloody mark on the bridge of Frank's nose looked unreal. How could a snowball have made that? It wasn't possible. Not unless he had some kind of superhuman strength. No... He wasn't superhuman. He was just a normal kid. Who just so happened to throw like a baseball player on steroids. Nothing wrong there. More blood was falling as Frank's hands were no longer there to hold it in and Nico felt even more sick. What was that smell? Like a chocolate shop or baking bread. Something sweet. Too sweet. He shook his head and knelt down to try and help, feeling his stomach growl a little when the scent got stronger, impossibly sweeter. "Frank. I- I'm so sorry. I swear I didn't mean to- I mean I didn't even think I could throw that hard." Another drop of blood. The smell was unbearably sweet now. Nico could feel his muscles locking up, like a cat ready to pounce. Frank laughed, then winced, as the action must have hurt. "It's fine man. An accident. Besides, I kind of had it-" He glanced up and his eyes stayed, sentence cutting short as he choked. "Your eyes." 'Oh no.' Nico's brain said frantically. 'He's talking nonsense now. Does he have a concussion? Oh God I gave him a concussion.' "What about my eyes Frank?" He asked out loud because now curiosity had him and even if Frank was just saying gibberish, he wanted to keep him talking so he'd know he was okay. "They're red." Three things happened at once: Hazel's hands stopped moving, her eyes drifted to her brothers face, jaw dropping as she did so and Nico laughed nervously. "Red? What-? What are you talking about? I don't have red eyes Frank. My eyes are black." "No." Hazel said, voice shaking with what Nico really hoped wasn't fear. "They're red. Like blood red. Look." She took her phone from her pocket and made nick look at the blank screen. What were they talking about? He looked normal. Same shaggy black hair, pulled into a hasty ponytail. Same olive toned skin, flushed pink from the cold. And his eyes...The same black eyes he'd always had- the ones he remembered his mother comparing to an onyx necklace his father had bought for her. They weren't black anymore. They were shining a sinister, familiar shade of blood red. As Nico handed Hazel back her phone- not missing the way she flinched when their fingers touched- he combed through his memory of that red color. He knew it from somewhere. A bright sanguine red. The same color of... Nico froze. That red. It was the same color of Percy's eyes when he was hungry. The same color of the eyes of the first vampire he was attacked by. Evan. His breath stopped and then switched into overdrive. 'Hyperventilating' his brain supplied as more of that sickly sweet scent filled his nose and made him feel hazy. Was his throat supposed to burn like this? Was his vision supposed to be red? We're his friends supposed to be cringing away from him like he was a monster? "What?" He asked, irritated because this didn't change anything. He was still Nico. Red eyes or not, he was still the same person. But of course, the normal Nico di Angelo, didn't have blood red eyes. He crawled closer to Frank, ignoring the way his throat burned with more intensity and focused on looking at the wound. Frank didn't let his hand get close. He back away instantly, eyes wide. "Maybe you should worry about yourself man." He said, obviously not trying to hurt any feelings but doing so anyway with the way his voice cracked in utter fear. "I'll be fine. But maybe you should go see a doctor. Or take a walk." A walk? Yes. A walk sounded nice. Nico nodded numbly, standing and quietly wishing his friend good luck with his injury before he plodded away. _________________________________________________________ 'Hungry.' Nico's brain whined as he marched through the crowded store, pretending to browse shoes when he was really just trying not to jump the girl in the next aisle. 'Shut up.' Nico hissed in his brain. 'So hungry.' His stomach moaned. ' I said shut up.' 'Thirsty.' His throat complained as he set down a pair of high tops that he had no where near enough money for. 'All of you shut it.' Nico screamed in his head, determined to make it through this. But the way that toddler's pulse raced as she chased a ball around the store, her mother paying more attention to a pair of heels, wasn't helping him. He focused on keeping his breaths short. Not taking in too much air so he wouldn't get a nose full of that sweet smell and end up losing his insanity. Only enough oxygen to safely survive. "That's not safe you know." A deep voice said behind him and Nico jumped, going into a defensive position before he even knew what was going on. A pair of tan hands were placed in the air. "Calm yourself. I'm a friend." Nico noted his 'friend's' face. The scar on his face that made him look a little sinister in the lighting. The sandy blonde hair that he had to admit, looked good. The knowing twinkle in his eyes that suggested mischief. The smile on his face that was surely intended to be warm and calming but thanks to the scar, came out twisted and sadistic. "Who're you?" He asked. Well more like croaked because his throat was in flames. "My name is Luke Castellan." The guy said calmly, as if he'd gone through this a million times. "You're the guy Percy was trying to get me away from this morning." Nico remembered after a moment of thought. Luke's face turned sour. "Yes. I'm apologize for that. Percy doesn't trust me as much as I would like him to." "Any reason for that?" Nico asked, suspicion flowing in every syllable. "None that you would like to hear." Luke answered. "Now that my interrogation is over, may I ask why you're holding your breath?" Nico frowned. "There's something wrong with me and not breathing all the way sort of helps." "It smells sweet in here doesn't it? Like a candy shop?" "How did you know?" Luke's smile was back, although Nico noticed the wolfish hints it held. "So you're one of them." He said quietly, obviously not meant to be heard for it was muttered, but Nico caught it. Then Luke turned to him, voice back to normal speaking volume. "I'll tell you. If you agree to walk with me." Nico briefly considered his options. 1) Follow the weird guy who may or may not have answered to what the hell was happening to him. 2) Don't follow the weird guy and be on his own with this shit, guessing as he went. Weird guy it was. * * * * * * * * * * "Hey." Nico called as he tried desperately to keep pace with the vampire in front of him. Luke didn't listen, his feet just kept moving. "Hey." Nico said, a little louder and a bit more agitated. Nothing. Ah screw it. His hand reached out and yanked at Luke's coat sleeve. Hard. Nico wasn't one for using force to get attention, but he wasn't completely against it. If the method worked then so be it. Luke whipped around, eyes looking hostile, like a ticking time bomb before they went back to normal, murderous glint replaced by a mischievous one. "My apologies." He said calmly. "It would appear that I was lost in thought. You were saying something?" "You said you would explain what is going on with me and how you know what's going on with me. But all we've done is walk around the mall. Can I get some answers now or did this just amount up to 30 minutes of my life that I'll never get back?" Luke apologized again and quickly suggested that they eat at the food court while he explained. Now that Nico though about it, he hadn't eaten in a long time. Not since the day before. And his stomach was making that awfully clear. Nico was still a bit suspicious of Luke though. After all his parents had taught him the basics of 'stranger danger'. But as he didn't have enough money to pay for the 8 dollar cheeseburger and 4 dollar milkshake he wanted- that money was spent on the taxi ride to the mall- the free food was greatly appreciated. Luke waited patiently for him to order, rejecting any food offered for himself, and basically standing there like a butler of sorts. "Your boyfriend's pretty polite. Buying you food but getting nothing for himself. A gentleman if I ever saw one." The cashier girl said as she took the 20 dollar bill from Nico's hand and smiled sweetly at Luke. Nico stuttered. "Wha-? Oh! No, he's not my- you see I'm just..." The girl laughed. "No need to explain. But I bet it's nice having someone cater to you like that. He's a keeper." Nico took his tray of food and quickly escaped the conversation, choosing to devour his burger instead of talking when Luke sat down across from him. "Do humans always do that?" Nico sipped on the whipped cream from his milkshake then started in on the cherry. "Do what?" "Look at people and assume. Guess what their relationship is just by glancing at them." Nico shrugged. "Dunno. Sometimes I guess." Then he frowned. "You can't talk. You were human once too so no doubt you've 'assumed' things about people too." Luke grunted. "It's been a long time since I've had the privilege to call myself human." "How old are you?" Nico asked around a tomato slice that fell out of his burger. "Nineteen." Luke said sarcastically and Nico rolled his eyes. "How long have you been nineteen smartass?" "Longer than you'd find comfortable." Nico shrugged, figuring that that was all he was going to get. "So about this-" He tried to use his words to explain, but failed miserably. "-thing with me. What do you know about it?" Luke glanced at a group of girls in the corner of the food court giggle and talk about whatever it was girls talked about. "I've seen it before. Someone with the blood of a human but the supernatural abilities of a vampire. I saw it once in Rio. A vampire seduced a woman and she bore a child. The woman died but the child became, special. She had the same blood of a human, but she had the strength and speed of a vampire." Nico frowned and picked at a piece of lettuce. "So this child, she could do all the things that a vampire could do? But she was still technically human?" Luke nodded and Nico frowned deeper. "What does that have to do with me?" "You're human right?" "Yeah. So?" "And you threw a snowball so hard you gave your friend a nosebleed? And nearly got sick just from being around other humans?" Nico stopped chewing. "How'd you know I hit my friend with a snowball?" Luke shrugged. "I'm a vampire and you smell incredibly sweet. I investigated. Sue me." "So you were stalking me?" "No." Luke said. "I was investigating. Big difference." "Whatever." Nico said. "What does me hitting my friend in the face with a ball of snow have to do with any of this?" Luke frowned. "What human alive can break someone's nose by hitting them with a snowball? I'm pretty sure you gave him a concussion. That's supernatural strength if I ever heard of it." Nico raised his eyebrows. "So what are you saying? You think I'm half human half vampire?" "Exactly." Nico snickered. "That's impossible." He said. "Neither of my parents are vampires. My mom is dead and my dad is nowhere near being a vampire." Luke smirked. "Are you sure?" "Positive. I think I of all people, would know my parents." "You said your mother was dead. Who was she?" Nico's gaze shifted to his plate, voice getting much softer. "My mom's name was Maria di Angelo. She and my older sister Bianca died in a house fire when I was little." "Does she look like this?" Nico looked up to see the screen of Luke's phone. On the display was a picture. Luke was standing in a large hallway with a woman. The woman had soft flowing hair and a beautiful smile. Her bright brown eyes sparkled and her olive skin glowed. Nico paled. "You knew my mom?" "I know your mom." Luke corrected. "She's not dead. She never died and she never will. She's a vampire. I don't know how she conceived you, but she did. Nico. You're half vampire." Nico choked on his burger. "What? I'm- I'm what? No. I am not half vampire. I am human. Percy said so." He hissed. "Then Percy lied. Because you are half vampire." _________________________________________________________ Nico held his head while he fought the urge to growl at the boys across the street. He watched their pulses thrum and held his stomach. He watched their skim stretch over their muscles as they wrestled on the grass in their front yard. Usually he'd be losing his mind over the muscles- because there were a lot of them. But it was hard to drool over the muscles when he was busy trying not to notice the smell of the blood running through their bodies. 'Please go inside so I don't jump you.' Nico chanted in his head as the boys just kept throwing each other on the ground. 'Inside. Go inside.' As if the gods were blessing him with a miracle, a man, who Nico assumed was the boy's father, came outside and called the boys in. Nico silently thanked him. "Nico?" Hazel's voice says quietly behind him. "Yeah?" Nico says, trying to erase the heavy scent of Hazel's blood from his nasal cavity. "Are you okay?" "Hn." "What does that mean?" Nico sighed. "It means I'm about to stuff my nose full of tissues. Or stop breathing until I die." "Why?" Hazel asked, taking a seat beside Nico on the front porch. "Do you have a cold?" She pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. "You don't have a fever." "No. It's not that, I've just been feeling off today." "If it makes you feel any better, Frank's not mad at you." Hazel said, smiling nervously. "If anything, he's happy Apparently he got some serious 'guy points' with his friends. Dakota said he should be an MMA fighter." If the sweet smell wasn't slowly murdering his sanity, Nico would've burst into laughter at the thought of Frank being a professional fighter. Unfortunately, he was a bit distracted by his sister's close proximity. His mind felt foggy and he ground his teeth together to stop from sinking them into his neck. Or anywhere else in her skin. He nodded, glad that Frank wasn't angry, but still waiting for Hazel to go back inside. "What are you doing out here?" He asked. Hazel sighed. "I actually came out here to tell you that dinner is ready." "I'm not very hungry." The pain and growling in his stomach said otherwise, but Hazel didn't need to know that. Hazel rolled her eyes. "Nico. Hungry or not, you're coming inside. It's pretty cold out here. And I don't want to have to carry my brother inside be a use he became a human Popsicle." Was it cold? Nico couldn't feel it. His body felt tight, like a spring coil waiting to be released. He tugged his jacket to his chest and faked a shiver for Hazel's benefit. "Yeah. I'll come inside. But I'm still not hungry." Hazel laughed and shoved his head as he headed inside


	12. Visions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy gets some bad news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry to anybody who was patiently waiting for me to update. I can't say that I have an excuse for this- unless spending the entire summer reading fanfiction and squealing mentally counts as an excuse. But I do apologize sincerely. I know how it feels to have to wait for-fucking-ever for an update on a story that I like. Hope this makes up for it.

Percy's always liked to compare Rachel Elizabeth Dare to a flower. Blooming brilliantly and daring you to look away only to become even more brilliant once you called her bluff. Other times he compares her to the sun. Red hair so bright, it's blinding. Almost as much as her smile once she's happy enough.  
But right now, Percy's thinking of her as every Disney villan in existence. He listens intently as Rachel recalls the vision she'd had of Nico and hopes silently that this is a joke. Percy's never been comfortable with the idea of fortune telling. Even when he was still human, fortune tellers gave him the willies. But surprisingly , he didn't care when Rachel showed up with her witty attitude and her ability of 'sight', as she called it. He didn't care when Rachel told him not to go somewhere because he'd get hurt. And he said nothing when she scolded him for going exactly where she'd said to not go. But he cared now. "Are you sure?" He asked for what had to be the fifth time, even though he's received the same answer the last four times he'd asked. Rachel nods gravely. "I am positive." Annabeth asks her to describe the vision in the best way that she can and Rachel clenched her eyes closed as if she's trying to bring the vision back to her head. "I saw Nico in a dark room and he was in chains. He was crying and there was blood around him. It wasn't his because it didn't look like he had any wounds. But he was surrounded by it. Then I saw him screaming in pain. Something was biting him- ripping him apart. Then I saw you-" She gestures to Percy. "-standing over his body, crying and-" She gestures again as if to say 'That's it'. Percy nods helplessly, and he goes numb while he processes that. Tries to make sense of it. His head feels jumbled and then clear once he realizes what Rachel's vision meant. Nico in chains. Nico screaming in pain as something rips him apart. And him crying over Nico's body. His brain finally catches up to what the rest of the knew all along. Nico's going to die. For a second, he goes numb again. He stays calm and stares at the floor and blinks for a bit. Then he loses it. His body feels cold and there's this foreign wetness on his face that he realizes are tears and he wipes at them like they're a nuisance. "No." He says hopelessly, teetering over the edge of sanity. Nico's going to die. His sanity is gone as well as any chance of not crying. Slowly the sobs overtake him, making his shoulders shake as he tries to hold them in. He'd worked so hard to be happy. To stay happy. He made a family. Surrounded himself with people he trusted and kept them safe. He even found a mate. Someone to spend the rest of his life with. His family. His life. Nico was supposed to be a part of that family. A part of his world. All of the pieces were supposed to fit together when he came around. Now it seemed like everything was falling apart. And then he starts to wonder: What's he supposed to do without Nico? Nico had become a constant. Something he needed and couldn't live without. He'd spent all his time making Nico his number 1 priority. What would he do with his time if Nico wasn't around to take it up? How is he going to move on? His entire being had become obsessed with the thought of Nico. He never told anyone but he spent half of his time thinking of Nico. His smile. The way his hair kind of bounced when he laughed. How his eyes would glint with irritation whenever the subject of Percy's super speed was brought up. How was he supposed to go without that now that he was used to it? He had even started having dreams about him. Happy little dreams where the 2 of them lived in a little house on the beach where they'd spend all day playing in the sand and water. They'd have a child- a boy or girl depending on how his day went. They would spend all day in the sand and Nico would cook dinner and read books to that child and sing lullabies. Then, once their son or daughter was sound asleep, the 2 of them would lock themselves in their room - or even go out and lay on the sand- and Percy would ravish Nico over and over again. Nico would grow old and get married and be happy with him. How would that dream ever come true if Nico died? He feels a hand on his shoulder and looks up to see Jason staring down an him with sympathy. The room is empty expect for them now and Jason sits across from him. "Hey." He says quietly, voice hinting at something close to mischief. "Remember that plan you, me and Piper talked about?" Percy runs through the memories of that conversation and nods. "What does that have to do with anything?" He sniffles, ashamed that he's been reduced to a sobbing teenage girl. "The plan won't do anything if he's dead." Jason rolls his eyes. "That's what I'm trying to say. If we just modify the plan a little, Nico won't die. Instead of starting the plan the day of the festival, why don't we just start earlier?" Percy blinks for a second. "That might work." Jason nods and smiles triumphantly. "Not might. It will work. It has to. Because if this is how you're gonna be when he dies, we need to make sure he doesn't die." _________________________________________________________ "No! Absolutely not. " "Please. " Percy pleaded. "I said no Percy, and by now, you should know me well enough to know that I'm not changing my mind." Percy did know Nico. But that was the problem. He knew him too well, knew too much about him. He was past the point of no return. "Why not?" He asked, knowing that Piper and Jason- who were out of human earshot, could hear them perfectly. "Because I don't need a protection detail. I get enough attention with you around looking hot and attracting the gaze of every horny teenaged girl in existence. The last thing I need is two more flawless individuals around me." Nico explains. Percy doesn't even go into the 'hot' comment, instead choosing to press on. "This is for your own good. I need to keep you safe." "Safe from what?" The question comes out like a hiss and Percy concentrates on not flinching at the angry tone. "I can't tell you." He says, hanging his head. The laugh Nico lets out is bitter to say the least. "Then as far as I'm concerned, I don't need protecting." Percy tries to explain why he does need protection, why this is so crucial to his survival, but Nico cuts him off. "No. Don't talk, I'm not done yet. If you can't tell me who I need to be kept safe from or why you seem to think that I'm so helpless that I need not one, not two, but three vampires looking out for me, I don't need them." Percy rubs at his temples, trying to beat away the despair and inevitable headache from hell that he's going to get from worrying about this. Nico notices. "Look." He starts, voice softer and more pleasant than before. "I appreciate the effort, really I do. And I get why you're doing this. I know that there are people out there who want me, for whatever reason. But I need you to understand. I don't want to be protected like some frail damsel in distress." "It won't be like that. They won't be near you, just close enough to make sure nothing happens to you. And intervene if something does." Percy grumbles. There's a sudden warmth on his cheek that spreads through his body, the kind of warmth that he only gets when he's around Nico and he freezes so he doesn't break down. Not here. "Percy. Look at me." He does as he's asked, lifting his head up to gaze into warm eyes. Eyes that- if he can't convince their owner to agree to this- will go dull, void of life. "Percy. I need you to trust that I can handle myself just fine. I'm a fighter. I came into this world kicking, screaming and covered in someone else's blood. I have no problem going out the exact same way. If they're coming for me, they'd better be ready to fight. I can do this. But I need you to trust me. Do you trust me?" "Of course I trust you." Percy replies, heart melting and freezing at the same time at the smile that his answer earns him. A light kiss on the cheek, and another melt and freeze of his heart. "Thanks." Nico smiles, walking backwards in the direction of his house. "I'll see you later, okay?" "You don't want me to walk you home?" Percy suggests. "And miss time to worry about that pop quiz that I didn't study for? No way." Nico jokes. Percy sends him a smile- one that he hopes is happy- and turns back to Piper and Jason. In a quick whoosh of wind, they're both by his side, both of them looking sad. "That's it." He says. "I tried. I really tried, but it's no use. It's inevitable. He's going to die. I'm going to lose him." "You don't know that." Piper says, sounding excessively reassuring. "Yeah I do." Percy answers, knowing that he sounds hopeless and sad, and not giving a damn. "Rachel can see the fucking future. She saw him die, and I can't stop it." "No. You can't." Jason says, always painstakingly honest. "But you can cherish every moment with him u til you don't have any left." Jason walks away, Piper hesitating for a second before running after him, leaving Percy alone. He stares at the ground, then up at the sky, asking the universe what he did to deserve this. He's about to lose everything. And in that moment, he realizes two things: One. He hates Rachel's vision. And two. He loves Nico too much to let him go that easily.


	13. Sad Talks and Transformers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy tells Nico about the bad news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally figured out what the hell that 'rich text' button does. In other news, I tried to crank this chapter out as fast as possible to make up for the lack of updates during the summer. (Again. Sorry for that.)

Nico can tell when something is wrong. He has this sort of knack for it these days, able to tell when someone or something isn't right. There's this feeling that crawls up his spine, settling in the nape of his neck, and leaving a chill there.

That feeling is there now, as he sits in class next to an agitated looking Percy. The vampire is the very definition of anxiety at the moment, oceanic eyes cloudy with an unrecognizable emotion. His mouth is set in a hard line, showing that he's either angry or deep in thought. His leg is bouncing, making the table wobble right along with it, the pencil gripped in his hand appears to be barely holding, Percy's grip tight against the plastic. The paper in front of him is blank except for a little doodle in the corner that Nico can't see but can tell that it must mean a lot because the index finger if Percy's other hand is slowly rubbing at it, smudging it.

"Hey." Nico hisses, prodding at Percy's arm when he's tired of his pencil jerked due to the wobbly table. Percy jerks, head whipping to face Nico, eyes worried and hollow before going back to their normal sparkly state. "What's wrong?" He asks. "Do you need something?"

Nico glances down at the table, noticing the fact that the table has stopped shaking. He also notices that the pencil in Percy's hand is no longer straining in the vampire's hand. 

"No." He says, watching the way Percy's finger never stops rubbing at that doodle on the corner of his paper. "Just thought that you seemed tense. Maybe it was just my imagination."

Percy shakes his head, smiling. "No, you're right. I was thinking about something. There's been a lot on my mind lately."

Nico watches the front of the classroom, making sure that the teacher isn't looking in his direction, before he speaks. "Like what?"

Percy shakes his head, smile starting to go from warm to barely there, as if he's slowly being drained of happiness. "Nothing serious. It's fine." Nico nods and they both go back to their respective papers, Percy still rubbing at that drawing and Nico knowing that everything is far from fine.

* * *

 

The second time that Nico gets that feeling is while he's feeding Percy.

His father is out of town, on yet another business trip. Hazel is out with Frank doing only God knows what, and Persephone was out with a group of friends for what she called 'girls night'. Nico was alone in his house, with no plans and nothing to do. So naturally, his first thought was to call Percy. The vampire was sitting with him on the couch in a matter of minutes, all too eager to be next to Nico, even if it was just for a second. The two of them had been laying on each other, watching Transformers for the 2nd time- because the first time had been spent being childish, having tickle fights and giggles- when Nico felt that familiar tug in his gut.

Nico sighed fondly while Percy groaned. "Sorry." He said, looking down at his stomach in slight annoyance. Nico shakes his head. "It's okay. Not like you can help it, besides, it's been a while since you've had any of me." The sentence sounds dirty, but Nico doesn't dwell on it, instead reaching up to pull his shirt off.

"What are you doing?" Percy asks, eyes traveling down the span of Nico's chest and then quickly flitting back up to Nico's face. "Why are you taking your shirt off?" Nico shrugs, holding up his gray and black t- shirt. "This is my favorite shirt. The last thing I need is for it to be ruined by blood." He smirks, walking forward to sit in Percy's lap, straddling his legs, stomachs pressed flush together. Percy goes a little pink, cheeks looking like they've been colored in with a pink crayon. His hands reach out to graze Nico's skin, pulling back before Nico gives him permission. Then he runs his hands up and down Nico's chest, fingers touching every crevice and muscle and every inch of skin. His eyes are hungry and not just because they're red. There's lust in them as well, the color shifting from green to red and back to green, back and forth as the vampire attempts to keep himself in check.

"Go ahead." Nico says, tilting his head to the side to provide Percy a better angle. "Drink." Percy tries to protest, tries to ask if Nico is really okay with doing this, but Nico stops him. "I'll be fine. But you, on the other hand need to drink. So hurry up, I can hear Optimus Prime about to fight Megatron and I don't wanna miss it."

Percy nods, leaning forward almost hesitant and then it happens. That phantom chill is slowly making itself known, creeping up Nico's spine and making itself at home on the back of his neck. Percy sighs and shakes his head, leaning back into the couch and frowning.

"What is it?" Nico asks, knowing good and we'll that if this were any other time, Percy would have jumped his bones by now.

"I can't do it." Percy whispers, the sentence obviously meant just for him but Nico catches it anyway. "Can't do what?" He asks, tugging his shirt back on since Percy doesn't seem very hungry anymore- his eyes are still redder than ever though. "This." Percy says, gesturing broadly to Nico- who doesn't take any offense to that at all. Okay, maybe a little offense. When Nico raises an eyebrow, Percy's quick to explain. "I mean I can't keep pretending that everything's okay when it isn't. I can't just sit by and spectate while you march to your death."

"My death?" Nico asks, crossing his arms and frowning as well. "I'm not going to die." He pauses and rephrases. "I mean, I will die, eventually, after all I am human-" and he makes no comment about the fact that he's only half human. "- and we all have to die someday. But I'm not gonna die anytime soon."

Percy looks at him funny, and when his eyes meet Nico's, both of them freeze. Percy's eyes are still bright red, so bright that they may as well be glowing. But as vibrant as they are, Nico sees something else in them, something he's never seen before. 

Fear. Percy's afraid.

Nico doesn't know what has him so scared, so jittery, and for a second he's pissed. He wants to find the cause of Percy's distress and rip it to shreds. Incinerate it, annihilate it so it can never come back. Percy looks lost, eyes cloudy now and he hangs his head, gaze focused on the couch. His shoulders are shaking, strangled sounds coming out of him and only then, does Nico realize that Percy's crying.

Nico leans forward, hand reaching up to cup Percy's chin but the vampire flinches, head jerk in back up, eyes somehow managing to look even more hollow before his head drops again. "Percy." Nico calls, as gently as he can despite his quickly growing frustration. "Percy please, tell me what's wrong."

No answer.

"Percy." He barks, having had just about enough of this, even though it's just started. "Don't pull this shit on me. Look at me." Percy listens- though it does take him a moment to do so- and picks his head back up again, letting Nico stare at him. "Now, I'm not going to ask again. What in the name of hell are you talking about?" The question comes out strained, stressed, and irritated.

"Rachel had a vision." Percy starts meekly, head starting to drop again until Nico's hand pops his chin, holding it in place.

"And what did she see?"

"She saw you." Percy says, some of the sobbing fading away so he's actually understandable without the need to listen as close for every word. "She saw you and you were dead."

If he was in a movie, Nico's sure that there'd be some kind of sad ass violin music playing in the background of his life. Maybe it'd be raining outside to set the perfect mood for news like that. But there's no music, and no storm. Instead, the night is calm, silent except for the occasional creak as the house settles, and all that Nico can hear is this God awful sound in his ears. It's loud, thrumming in his ears, pulsing through his body until he goes cold. He breathes, trying to tell his body to knock it the hell of because someone in this room has to be calm and quiet and Percy obviously isn't up for it right now. In his nose, out his mouth. In his nose, and out his mouth.

"I was dead." He mutters, once he can get his brain to focus on making words again. Percy nods helplessly. "How do I die, in her vision?"

"I don't know- don't remember."

Nico nods at that, seeing it only logical that Percy can't remember. Or doesn't want to. Either way, it makes sense. If it were him, he'd try his best to forget something like that as well. Percy's started shaking again- though Nico isn't exactly sure when the hell he even stopped. "Stop." Nico orders, knowing that being nice isn't going to help him right now, not when Percy's like this. "Look at me. Do I look dead to you?"

When Percy doesn't answer, Nico sighs. "It wasn't a rhetorical question Percy."

"No." Percy stutters. "You look very much alive."

"That's right." Nico says. "I do look alive. And we don't know when this vision might come true. But right now, I'm alive, and I'm here with you. So there's nothing to cry about." He gets a nod from that, and when he deems the matter to be settled, he leans in, head resting against Percy chest, listening to the end credits of Transformers. "Besides." He says, feeling that tug in his gut again. "You've got bigger fish to fry right now."

Percy wastes no time in sinking his teeth into his skin.

* * *

 

Nico's not sure when he drifts off, mind still hazy and body still warm from when Percy drank from him. But when he wakes up, he's lying in his bed with the covers pulled up around him, tucked neatly by his body like a child. Weird, because he could swear that he feel asleep the night before using Percy as a pillow.

He sits up, glancing around his room and frowning at his open window. Any normal person would think rationally, would assume that the wind had simply blown it open while he slept. Nothing more than a coincidence. 

Unfortunately, coincidences didn't happen very often for him, and in his mind, he was far from normal.

Nico's feet touch the floor quickly, padding to the window and glancing out onto the roof to find it empty. Nothing. Just the black tiles that make the roof. He sighs and shuts the window, making a mental note to ask his dad if he can fix windows.

There's a chill running down his spine- one that he knows can't be from the cold because the window is shut now- that makes him go alert. He pretends to stare out the window while his eyes glare into the reflection of the glass, peering back into his room. At first, there's nothing. Just an empty space. Then, one of the jackets om the back of his door move, bending in an imaginary breeze and Nico tenses.

"If you're in my house, I'd advise you to get the hell out now. I'm too tired for this bull crap."

"Too bad." An unrecognizable voice growls, and then Nico's vison goes dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh no....cliffhanger.


	14. Chapter 14

"To the left."

_Scratch_

"No. Your other left."

_Scratch_

_"_ What part of left don't you understand?"

Percy leans against the doorway of the ballroom, watching Annabeth attempt to make some order of the chaotic setting. He watches as she groans in frustration at the vampire child that she'd been directing. The poor kid looked like he was seconds away from snapping and slapping Annabeth in the face. Percy knew him. His name was Damien, and out of all the vamps he let stay here, Thomas was his favorite. The boy was just like him. Irrational at times, immature at other ms and just one big ball of happy energy.

Except for now. 

"Annie." He growls angrily. "I get that you're stressed and all but if you tell me to move this table to 'my other left ' one more time, I'm gonna lose it. There's only one left."

Annabeth frowns sternly, setting a sort of staring match between the two, volitle and ready to blow if someone makes a wrong move. For a second, Percy thinks about interfering, about saving the young vampire's life. But then he remembers the last time he'd done so. (The scar he'd received from the incident throbs at the memory.)

"Damien!" A girl's voice yells in irritation and suddenly, the boy's- surpringly- younger sister is zooming into view, stopping only long enough to grab at her brother's shirt before zipping away with him, muttering about how her brother is such an idiot.

Annabeth stares after him, eyebrow twitching in irritation before she sighs and relaxes. "Still hard at work I see." Percy says in a teasing manner.

Annabeth sighs again, obviously tired but still to stubborn to say so. "It's harder than it looks." She says, hands gesturing around the large ballroom. "I wanna do a different theme than last year. Preferably something less gothic. Less red and black." Percy chuckles and Annabeth turns to him, frowning.

"What are you even doing out here? Weren't you still moping?" Percy growls. He had been locked in his room for a while, still contemplating the thought of Nico being gone. He thought that maybe, just maybe, if he stayed away long enough, he could forget about it and just go on with his life. Of course that hadn't worked. The longer he'd sat in his room, the more worried and frustrated he got. Eventually, it got so bad that he started smelling the shirts that Nico had touched, the ones that he had worn when he was near him. And they smelled like  _him._  

Sweet and warm. The scent burned through his nose, warming his body from his head to his curled toes, and suddenly he had to leave. He loved the smell, but if he didn't get away from it, he'd suffocate. The only option had been to leave as soon as possible.

"I don't want to talk about it?" Percy gritted. Annabeth sighed. "Seriously Percy, you can't tell me that you really expected him to just accept the protection. I may not know him well but I know what he's like. He's stubborn and quick to anger. He's exactly like you."

"I know." Percy mutters, eyes going quickly to the floor. "That's what I'm afraid of." He walks slowly to Annabeth, regaining his composure as he gets there. "But forget about that. Do you want some help?" Annabeth clicks her teeth and smirks. "You. Help me. With this. Yeah, okay."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Percy frowns. "It means that you suck at decorating."

"I didn't say anything about doing any actual decorating. I could lift things and put stuff up. Hang things up. At least stop you from hurting one of the kids." Annabeth frowns too. "He had it coming. Smartass little-"

"See? If one of the kids had said that, you'd have screamed at him until they pissed themselves." Percy puts his hands on his hips, face stern like a teacher scolding a child. "I'm helping you, whether you want me to or not." Annabeth relents, rolling her eyes at Percy's stubbornness. "Fine. Go out in the back and greet the guests. They've been dying to see you anyway."

Percy blinks. "When did we get guests?"

"They started streaming in a few days ago while you were still locked in your room. To be honest, I'm surprised you didn't hear them. They were pissed that you weren't coming out and making some kind of welcome speech. Thalia said she'd smack I'm you when she saw you. And Clarisse threatened to kick you where the sun doesn't shine."

Percy flinches at the name 'Clarisse'. He and the female vampire had never gotten along. She liked to make fun at his expense. It seemed like she always found a way to know whenever he messed up. They were friends- if that's what you'd classify as friendship- but that didn't stop him from hating the fact that she was here.

"Oh boy." He sighs, pressing a hand to his temple. "This is gonna be the worst."

"Don't complain now. Just rip the band-aid off real quick and get it over with." Annabeth smirks, obviously enjoying Percy's pain. "You'd better get out there and sooth the crowd before they start to riot." Percy groans, walking as slow as he can to the backyard.

 

When Annabeth said that the guests were pissed, she wasn't kidding. The entire backyard was filled with angry immortals and the second they saw him they started shouting.

Piper rushed to him, face filled with relief. "Oh thank God. I was beginning to think that you'd just run off on us. Jason and I were trying to calm them down but as you can tell it isn't going very well. We're gonna need your help."

"No kidding." Percy groans, gulping at the amount of eyes glaring at him. "I'll handle this." He walks out to the middle of the yard, head high- though he feels like running away to a vacated island and becoming a hermit. "Hello everyone." He says loudly to get everyone's attention. "I'd like to welcome you all to my home to celebrate this wonderful tradition." He frowns as he says the word 'tradition', because to him, it's anything but. 

_We're tricking people to their deaths. Lying to them so they can become our meals. This isn't a celebration, it's murder._

But of course, he doesn't say all that aloud. Not when there are some real fanatics out there. Vampires who consider the first of their kind to be a god. They prepare viciously for the festival, going weeks without blood so they become absolute savages by the time the festival rolls around. It's sick, in Percy's opinion, but then again, he doesn't have a choice in the matter. Never has, never will.

The crowd seems to be pleased with his introduction, and comes alart, dispatching into groups to calmly talk. (Funny when they'd been pissed just 3 seconds ago. Vampires are weird.)

"Where the hell have you been?" A female voice asks and Percy cringes. Thalia.

Sure enough, there she is, ageless as usual, not looking a day over 15- even though she's older than Percy by like, a century. Her face is full of irritation and anger, her hair still blacker than a raven. Her look has adapted though. Instead of the girly clothes she'd been forced to wear to fit into society the last time Percy had seen her, she's wearing all black. A leather jacket that looks to be ripped beyond fixing is draped across her shoulders, covering a black band t-shirt. 

"Well?" She asks, foot tapping. "It wasn't a rhetorical question Percy, I'd like to hear an answer."

"I got a little distracted by a personal situation. I lost track of time."

"Reaally?" She smirks, drawing the word out in a way that makes Percy know that this will not end well for him. "Because rumor has it that you've been rather intimate with a human." Percy growls. "It's not a rumor. I bonded with him. He's my mate now." For some reason, the very thought of telling anyone that pisses him off. He should be the only one to know what Nico is to him and now that Thalia knows too, he's unreasonably angry.

"Well, where is he? I wanna meet the boy who stole Percy Jackson's heart." Thalia smiles and Percy rolls his eyes. "He's at home, hopefully still sleeping." He smiles at the thought of Nico sleeping, bundled up in warm blankets, peacefully. Snoring quietly as his hair gets tangled up in the pillowcase, eyelashes fluttering as he dreams happily and-

_NO. Stop thinking about him. The last thing you need is to think about him like this when he dies._

Percy shakes his head,  determined to stay cool even though he's sure he looks horrible right now because the thought of Nico being dead is slowly creeping back into his mind and his vision is starting to get a bit blurry. "You can't meet him." He says and Thalia nods, obviously noticing the way that he sniffles after he speaks.

"So, how are you doing?" She asks, voice quiet. Percy shrugs. "I guess I'm okay."

"Don't lie to me or I'll go to Annabeth and ask her and you know she'll tell me everything"

Percy sighs. "He's going to die soon. Rachel saw him in one of her visions. He dies." Thalia stops herself, eyes hardening, body freezing. "When?"

"I don't know. Rachel doesn't know either, or she hasn't told me. But I don't know when it'll happen?"

"What are you going to do when he does?" Thalia says. Percy shrugs. "Die inside. Possibly go into a murderous rage on whoever is the cause of his death."

"And if you're the cause of his death?" Percy growls. "I'd never do anything that would kill him. But...if he did die...and it was my fault.... I'd kill myself. I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

Thalia nods. "He must mean a lot to you."

"He's everything to me. My entire world. It just took me a while to realize it."

Thalia's about to talk again, but she freezes, body whipping around toward the back door. Percy raises an eyebrow. "What?" Then he smells it. A warm scent, one that reminds him of home. It smells like Nico but not that sweet. The scent isn't as irresistible as Nico's but may as well be with as much of it is coming off the human. Percy knows this human, knows the curly hair that's pulled into a ponytail. Knows the golden eyes that shine with fear, knows the voice that calls for him.

Hazel.


	15. A Sister's Intuition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hazel knows when something isn't right with her brother. She has this internal instinct in her head that lets her know when Nico is in trouble. She knows when he gets into fights at school. Knows when he forgets to do his homework and when he gets hurt. She prides herself on that ability. Always has. But now, she can't breathe. Can't move. Can't do anything more than stand there because she's scared. She doesn't know what to do. She doesn't know where her brother is, and she hates herself for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I kind of made Nico disappear (sorry for how not sorry I am about that) I decided to make my first Hazel chapter. Hopefully, it doesn't suck.

Hazel Levesque has always prided herself on her ability to know when her brother is in trouble. She's had it for as long as she could remember, this instinctual habit of just _knowing._  She knows when Nico gets into fights at school. Knows when he forgets his homework. When he's sad, happy, irritated, she knows all of it. 

And not just because she knows her brother. She does, know him, but he's not an open book. He's confusing sometimes, difficult to understand, face always contorted into the same mask of indifference, pretending that he doesn't care. 

She knows it's weird, the way she can tell exactly what's going through his mind, but at the same time, she's proud. Proud that she can do what most other siblings can't. Proud that she can be there for him, be his shoulder to cry on if he ever needs one and his diary to gush at when he's excessively happy. She's proud to be his sister, to be the one who protects him, even when he doesn't know he's being protected. 

But now, she can't breathe. Can't move. Can't do anything more than stand, staring down at the crumpled piece of paper on the kitchen counter. It would have been fine if she hadn't seen it, hadn't gone into the kitchen to get a glass of water for her parched throat. 

Now that she's seen it, she can't think straight, emotions tumbling from fear to rage in a matter of seconds. 

The note is simple, just a happy little sentence from Nico:

_Hey sis,_

_Left for Percy's earlier this morning, decided to spend the day with him, don't wait up._

Nothing but a quaint little note. No reason to worry or fret. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nico was always leaving notes like this. He was always over Percy's house, though he claimed to be just friends with him. (Yeah right.) Hazel had a whole trash can filled with crumpled notes with Nico's handwriting on them. There wasn't a need to be afraid. There was just one problem.

"This isn't his handwriting." 

It wasn't. Nico's handwriting was smooth, fluid, better looking in print than most adult's cursive. Clean, curvy. This was nothing like Nico's handwriting. The 'r' and the 'n' in 'morning' weren't attached like they usually were. The 'i's were dotted when they weren't supposed to be. And Nico never called her sis, not even in writing. It was always 'Hazel' or 'Haze'. He'd never said 'sis' in his life.

"This wasn't written by him." Hazel said, fists clenched as she tried to think about who could have possibly written it besides her brother. 

"Nico?" She calls, hoping for a second that she's just being pranked, that Nico just fudged up his handwriting to confuse her. Except, Nico didn't prank, and even if he did he wasn't creative enough to think of something like this. This wasn't a joke. Nico wasn't home. So where was he?

"Was he kidnapped?" She wondered aloud, stomach turning at the thought. "Is he okay? I can't tell?"

She turns around, blankly trying to find some sign that Nico was here. She walks up the stairs, into Nico's room, and stops cold. The window is shut, but the area around it is wrecked. Blankets strewn around on the floor. Pillows knocked over. His nightstand is overturned, obviously signs of a struggle. He was taken against his will.

"But where?" Hazel asks herself, knowing she won't get an answer but hoping for one anyway. She walks to his nightstand, turning it back over and picking the stuff off the floor. She cleans the room, picking up clothes, making the bed, fixing the pillows until the place is spotless. It isn't much, but for now it's all she can think to do while she wonders what happened to her brother.

She's just about done, picking the last piece of dirty clothing off the floor, when she sees it. Nico's phone. It's lying just under the bed, probably kicked under by Nico during his struggle. The screen looks slightly cracked by otherwise okay. Hazel clicks the home button, turning the device on, finding the battery at 15%. She plugs the phone into the charger and types in the password (she knows it after having to unlock it for him when his hands are occupied and he never changed it so it does unlock.) The home screen comes on and Hazel's breath catches in her throat. 

Nico's home screen wallpaper is a picture of him, smiling. His eyes are shining, mouth tilted in a smirk. Next to him is Percy, who's smiling crookedly, eyes full of adoration and mischeif. To be honest, Hazel's never seen her brother this happy. Never seen him smile so wide, or look so...in love. 

Then it hits her. 

_Percy would know. If anyone would know where Nico is, it's him._

It's a long shot, she knows. It may work and it may not. But right now, she doesn't have any other option. Her brother is missing and she has a chance to find him. Even if it doesn't work, she's not about to let it go to waste.

She grabs her car keys and locks the door behind her.

* * *

 

Hazel knows where Percy lives. It's kind of a side effect from dropping Nico off more than enough times to remember the route. It's a side effect that she's grateful for as she speeds through town, towards the house.

The size of the place never ceases to amaze her. She wonders how she never noticed it before, since she's lived here almost all her life. Then again, she'd never been to this side of town before Percy, so the whole neighborhood was new to her.

She pulls in harshly, putting the car in park and yanking the keys out, door being shoved open then slammed as she jogs to the front door and pounds on it. When she doesn't get an answer right away, she pounds harder, hoping that Percy's home.

The door is yanked open on the third round of pounding, revealing a short blonde girl with green eyes. She looks slightly agitated until her eyes land on Hazel and she freezes, taking a breath and holding it, as if Hazel smells bad. She wouldn't be surprised if she did. She hadn't showered when she woke up, only washing up at the sink, so if she smelled kind of musty it wouldn't be much to her.

"Who are you?" The girl asks- grits almost, because she's still not breathing. 

"My name is Hazel Levesque di Angelo-" She adds the last name just in case the girl knows Nico. "-my brother Nico comes here a lot and he went missing earlier. I was wondering if maybe he came here." The girl shakes her head. "No. I haven't seen him around lately. But Percy's here, maybe I could take you to him and you two could talk."

Hazel nods to that, walking through the door as the girl slinks away to hold it open for her. The girl leads her through hallway after hallway, out to what appears to be a backyard and Hazel gasps. It's huge. Filled to the brim with people, all of them talking to one another.

The girl opens the door and nods out, looking kind of afraid, as if she's scared not for herself but for Hazel. That doesn't make her feel any better about the situation. She steps out and instantly feels all eyes shift to her. Normally, she wouldn't be nervous about that, she's been the object of quite a few stares before in her lifetime. Between doing school speeches and being on the student council for a year, she's grown used to being the center of attention sometimes. But this is different. These eyes are different.

_They're red._

The fact sinks into her brain slowly, as some of the eyes morph back to normal colors- blue, green, brown- and she breathes to keep herself calm as she searches for familiar sea green eyes. She catches them and they widen, darting back to the girl he'd been talking to. Hazel can tell that the conversation is heated, the girl's hands moving erratically, her eyebrows pressed into a deep line.

Finally, the girl gives in, throwing her hands up and stomping away, before Percy makes a V line for Hazel.

He stops in front of her, smiling brightly, eyes sparkling with something unintelligible. "Hazel. What a surprise." He says politely, making Hazel wonder how Nico could even stay away from this guy for longer than a few hours at a time. It's not even the way he looks- though the sun tanned skin and bright eyes along with the black hair does help- it's the general manner in which he speaks. Like a gentleman on his first date with a woman. Hazel doesn't even know him that well, but he's so chivalrous in the way he acts, guiding Hazel back inside and into a room filled with couches.

He lets her pick her own seat, sitting across from her and smiling again. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" He asks and Hazel kind of swoon because _dang, can he talk._

She breathes and let's the words flow, noticing the way that Percy's brows furrow deeper with every word. "And I thought that maybe you'd know where he was."

"He's missing?" Percy asks, voice kind of cracking. Hazel nods. "Yeah. And I know he didn't leave on his own because he left his phone, and the note that was left for me wasn't in his handwriting." She hands Percy the note that she'd brought with her, letting him confirm that it indeed isn't her brother's handwriting.

"So he was kidnapped?" Percy grits, hands clenching into fists. Hazel nods. "That's the conclusion I've come to yes."

Hazel's always thought of Percy as a gentle soul. Someone who wouldn't hurt anyone unless he had to. Whenever she would happen to see him and Nico together, they were always smiling. His nose would be buried into the skin of Nico's neck while Nico would have his hand in Percy's hair, possibly on his back. They were happy and carefree. But Hazel's never seen Percy Jackson like this. Clenching his hands, jaw tight as he grinds his teeth together. Eyes clenched shut as well, like he's trying to keep calm and it isn't working. He looks like he could demolish an army by sheer will alone. The kind if person who'd die for someone else. A mother protecting her cub. An alpha protecting his omega. 

"Do you think we should call the police?" Hazel asks, trying to restart the conversation before Percy goes on a rampage. "Maybe see if they can-" 

"No." Percy snaps, voice low like that of an feral beast and Hazel flinches. Percy sighs, shoulders dropping, body relaxing as he tries again. "No. I don't think the authorities should be involved in this just yet. Believe me, I'm just as worried as you are. But Nico does have a habit of forgetting things. This wouldn't be the first time he's left the house without his phone. It could be possible that he just went out for a walk or something. I don't think the police would be very happy about getting a 911 call for a missing boy when he's at the park."

He has a point. Hazel knows it, but she doesn't focus on that. She focuses on the underlying fury in Percy's eyes. They're not as sea green as they were a few minutes ago, instead they're a dull oceanic gray, the color of waves during a terrible storm.

"So what do you suggest we do?" She asks, still focus switching to Percy's hand which is curled into a tight fist on the edge of his armrest.

"I think we should wait for a while. See if he comes back. We don't know for certain if he's really been taken, so we should wait before we start jumping to conclusions."

"How long?"

"6 hours at the least. 24 at the most. If he isn't back by then, I can promise you that I'll call the cops myself and be out there looking with them."

Hazel nods at that, standing and peering out the open window in the room. The sun is getting higher in the sky, closer to noon. She still has class tiday, crisis or not and as much as she would love to skip them, she needs as many credits as she can get at this point. "I have to go." She says and Percy nods, standing as well and guiding her out to the door, watching politely as she gets in the car and revs up the engine. As the large house disappears from view, Hazel's worry eases away a bit.  Nico's gonna be okay. She knows it. 

After all, she is his sister. And she always knows.

* * *

 

The second Percy closes the door behind him, he has to suppress a scream.

_Nico's missing. He's been kidnapped. Who would take him?_

He doesn't know, and it's all he can do to walk back to the ballroom without putting a hole in the wall. Still, the door slams loudly on the wall when he walks through it, alerting Annabeth to his presence.

"Hey, could you not break the wall please? Last time you-" She stops dead in her tracks when she sees his face and she's across the room and by his side with extreme speed. "What is it? What happened?"

 

"He's gone." Percy chokes, and Annabeth frowns. "Already? There's no way Rachel's vision could have come true that quickly."

Percy shakes his head. "No. He's not dead. Not yet anyway. He was kidnapped. His sister cane by a few minutes ago and told me. He wasn't home this morning." He's crying now, tears kind of overwhelming his voice so when he speaks his voice wavers.

"Who do you think would take him?" Annabeth  asks, to which Percy shakes his head. "I dunno. It could be anyone. Some random vampire who thought he smelled good and wanted him for the festival. I kept him away from everyone who could harm him, he hasn't met anyone that he would know who'd-" He stops because something just clicked. He's right. Nico never met any vampire that Percy knew who wanted to cause him harm. But he had heard of one. And that vampire had made sure to comment about how good he smelled. 

"Where's Luke?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if the last chapter was too short. I was trying to finish that one and this one at the same time and the ides kept crossfiring in my head. Hopefully this one is longer and it helps.


	16. A Desperate Action

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Percy takes action and Nico finds out where he is and meets a strange person.

When Nico wakes up, the first thing he notices is the extreme discomfort in his lower back. Like there's a thousand pins and needled sticking out if his skin. Moving doesn't help much, as doing so only succeeds in making the sensation worse, but the action does help him come to his next realization.

He's in chains.

Like, real chains. The kind that you'd see in Disney movies that keep the hero from rescuing the princess- even though he saves her anyway because it's Disney and they can't live without a happy ending. He tugs half heartedly on them just to see how far he can move and isn't surprised to find that his amount of mobility is limited. Of course that doesn't stop him from tugging harder once he's fully awake, tryimg to figure out what the hell he's doing in chains. His brain tries to come up with answer, but he can only remember waking up in his room. Then a blank space. And now, he's here.

He wriggles around for a second, making the chains rattle some more, when he comes to his next realization. 

He's naked.

Like, newborn baby naked. No clothes in sight. Not even a pair of boxers to cover his butt, and he makes a conscious effort to keep his legs closed from now on. His head kind of hurts but of course he can't check it because the chains prevent him from doing so and despite the horrible situation hes in, he's annoyed to no end. 

"Seriously? Can't even get a pair of underwear?" The question is meant for himself so he doesn't really expect am answer. But then again, the universe has a funny way of messing with him.

"Hey, it could be worse right?" A phantom voice says to his left, making Nico jump and making the chains rattle even more. "I mean, we aren't dead yet so I call that a win."

Any other time and Nico would have agreed. But considering the fact that he's naked, bound in chains next to a person who's probably in the same  condition, he has to be skeptical. After all, he's still human. Well half human anyway.

"Who are you?" He asks, an the person laughs. 

"Someone actually wants to know who I am. That's new." The statement is  muttered, making Nico believe that he wasn't supposed to hear it, but the next statement is louder. "My name is Marcus. Marcus Shaw. Who are you?"

"I'm Nico. Where are we?"

There's a rattle of chains that makes Nico guess that Marcus has just shrugged. "To hell if I know."

"How long have we been in here?" Nico asks. Another rattle. Another shrug. "Not sure. But they've been coming in every once in a while to check on us. And they gave food to the ones who were awakeawake, so I'm gonna say that I've been here a few days. You? A couple hours."

"Who are they?"

"Dunno. I don't really remember much before here. But it's kind of obvious that we were kidnapped. Don't know why we're naked though. Maybe they're human traffickers? That would explain the  chains." Nico nods to that, though he doubts that Leo can see it because it's real dark. "Yeah. That would make sense. But why us?" 

"Maybe we're different. Maybe that's why they want us. I remember when I was little my mom always told me that I was a special kid. Never really believed her. Maybe this is proof." Marcus sounds kind of wistful, like he's remembering something, and Nico understands the feeling. His mom had always said the same thing. Whenever he was sad or his father was being especially heartless, she'd sit him down and sing to him. An old lullaby that he'd forgotten the words to but knew the melody to, and she'd hold him close in her lap, with her hair hanging down into his own. Then, she'd smile down at him. "I know you think your father is a harsh man. But really he means well. He's just awkward with his way of showing it. You're special and he knows it. I know it too."Nico would laugh and she would laugh right with him until they were crying and their stomachs ached.

He smiles at the memory. "My mom said that a lot too. I didn't think she meant it either. But I guess I do believe her now. And us being different would definitely explain why we're here. Still, I would've appreciated it if they'd let me keep my clothes. Even just my underwear. I'm freezing over here."

"My apologies for your discomfort. It is policy that our initiates come to us baring nothing but their skin and their hearts." An unfamiliar voice says, and Nico hears the rattle of chains next to him that he guesses is Marcus flinching. The voice laughs, a deep throaty sound that sends chills down Nico's spine. "My bad. I didn't mean to scare you. You can relax. I'm only hear to tell you why you're here." There's a loud scrape that Nico can only imagine is a chair being dragged across the floor. "I suppose the two of you would like to know who I am."

"That'd be nice." Nico agrees.

The man sits back in the chair, rolling his shoulder and sighing. "My name is Kronos. And I am here to help you."

* * *

Percy is racing towards Luke's room before Annabeth can stop him, realization and rage flowing through his veins. He doesn't knock on the door, instead bursting through it to find Luke sitting on the bed reading a book. The title is 'Twilight', Percy notices- and mentally scoffs because that's nothing if not ironic. "Forget to knock Perseus?" Luke asks and Percy smirks, rushing forward to grab Luke by the throat. He hates the way Luke looks at him, sarcastic and asinine even when he's being choked. "Where is he?"

"Where is- who?" Luke chokes, and Percy grips harder. "Don't give me that bullshit. You know who. Where. Is. He? Where is Nico?" Luke smirks harder. "You lost your mate. How pathetic." He chokes again as Percy shoves even harder, feeling the wall crack against his strength. "Shut up! Tell me where he is!"

"It's too late." Luke grins, scar making the gesture look even more wicked. "He belongs to Kronos now. He's ours."

Percy's hand loosens, dropping Luke to the floor, hacking an coughing as he tries to catch his breath. "Kronos?" He says, voice shrinking as Luke continues to hack. 

 "Of course." Luke smiles once hs recovered. "Kronos will use him with the others to make the world the way it should be. Humans will be put in their place, like the wild, untamed beasts they are. And Nico will help us do just that."

* * *

 

"You wanna turn humans into slaves?" Nico asks, incredulously. Kronos nods- at least Nico thinks he does because he can't see very well. "That's right. And you two, as well as the others, are going to help with that."

"Why would you want to do something like this?" 

Kronos laughs, a harsh, cruel sound. "Are you kidding me? Humans are selfish creatures. They ruin their own lives by simply existing. How many wars have they started for no reason? How many people have they killed because they don't have the mind to stop? I've lived through several of those wars, fought in most of them, and I can tell you, it isn't pretty. My goal is to stop the humans from destroying themselves." Nico frowned. "And you think that enslaving mankind is going to achieve your goal?"

"Exactly. By enslaving humans, we will stop the from causing more harm to themselves."

"No way." Nico says. "There's no way I'm hell that I'm agreeing to do this. You can't just enslave people against their will, no matter how much you think you're helping them. We live in the 21rst century now, so that's kind of illegal." Kronos nods again. "Of course. I respect your decision. I won't force you to do anything you don't wish to. But since you won't agree to work with our cause, I'm afraid you are going to have to stay here. Unless you have decided to see sense and change your mind."

"Never." Nico growled, and Kronos chuckled. 

"I see. Well, I suppose I should take my leave now. Plenty of planning left to be done."

Wait!" Marcus calls out, just as Kronos stands to leave. "You said we would be kept here until all this is over. What happens then?"

Kronos nods. "Simple. Once the world is ours, I'll come back to ask you again. If your mind has changed, you will be allowed to join our new society."

"And if we don't?" Marcus asks. "If we choose to not join you, what happens to us?"

"You die." And with that, Kronos turns and walks away.

* * *

 "Who the hell is Kronos?" Piper asks once Percy's called everyone to the game room to discuss the danger at hand. The room is silent, nothing like the way it usually is, but with an enemy as dangerous as Kronos circulating around, there's no time for games. Instead of the usual light, the room is dark, filled with more chairs since there's more people than before.

"His full name is Donovan Hathaway." Annabeth says, explaining to everyone since there are a few vampires in the room who weren't around when Kronos became a threat. "He earned the name Kronos due to his extreme anger that his comrades thought matched with his namesake. About fifty years ago, after witnessing countless human wars, he decided that humans were too foolish to be left alone to kill themselves off. He was convinced that the only way to save them was to enslave them, prevent them from ever doing something that would bring harm to themselves. He broke away from his coven, even killing three of them in the process, to begin his plan. Eventually he became a threat large enough to gain the council's attention and was never heard of again. We all assumed that the council killed him. But now..."

"Now he's back and rearing his ugly ass head again." Leo guessed, sitting down next to his mate and fiance, Calypso. "Which I'm going to guess is bad."

"He has my mate." Percy growled, fists clenching at the very thought of Nico alone with someone as murderous as Kronos.

"So...bad." Leo deadpanned. Next to him, Chiron nodded. 

As the eldest vampire in the group, Chiron knew well what Kronos was capable of. He'd been there, fought the man himself. With his beard and dark eyes that seemed to know everything, he was wise with the way he spoke. "Percy, I understand you're frustrations, I understand that you must be-"

Frustrations?" Percy ground out, nails digging into the wood of the chair he sat in.  "He's mine. Only mine, and he'd still be by my side if Luke hadn't interfered." His eyes darted to Luke, who was lying in the corner, bound in ropes and unconscious. Percy had knocked him out as soon as he told him where Nico was. (Doing so probably wasn't the best way to react but Percy was the kind of person to act without thinking.) He knew the ropes wouldn't do much to keep Luke contained when he awoke, but seeing the bastard so vulnerable and pitiful looking made his pride soar, so he did it anyway. 

"Even so." Chiron said, eyeing Luke as well. "Now is the time to act wisely, not brashly. Annabeth and I will put our heads together and try to devise a plan that won't get us all killed. In the meantime, try and calm down." He turned to Piper. "Do you think you can keep the guests calm long enough for us to solve this?"

"I'll try but I can't make any promises."

"Very well." Chiron said. "Do your best. The rest of you, do whatever you can to keep things in order. Hopefully this will all just blow over."

The amount of doubt in the room was enough to crush a city.


	17. Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marcus had always known he was a little different. It had just never clicked until now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay okay. You're probably pissed at me for taking so long to update. But lemme just tell you, gifted school is hard. So. Many. Projects. And I have a D in English! How do you get a D in the language that you speak fluently? Anyway, this chapter isn't like the rest. Remember that Marcus kid? Well this one is about him, his whole back story and all. You can skip it if you want, though I wouldn't recommend it, cuz the chapter after this probably won't make any sense unless you read this one. Oh well, I'm doing my best.

Marcus David Shaw was born on a crisp February morning at 6:32 am in a hospital just outside his mother's hometown. He nearly died that day, his umbilical cord having wrapped around his throat during birth, causing his mother to have a C- section. "I don't regret a single thing." His mother would later tell him.

He had a lot milestones.

When he was one and a half years old, he said his first word. ("Fuck!" He'd yelled after dropping an Oreo. He'd heard his mother say the word a lot, and it'd caught on quickly.)

He'd taken his first step a month later. (After falling on his tush about a hundred times beforehand.)

He learned to read early, at about three and a half years old. And went to school when he turned four.

He was diagnosed with attention difecit disorder when he was six, after not being able to sit still for longer than a minute at a time.

He was identified as gifted in talented when he was eight, testing out in math, science, and reading. He was then transferred to a special school where he could advance in all of his grades as fast as he wanted. Though he chose to not skip any grades.

* * *

Marcus David Shaw had his first crush in eigth grade. Peter Hawke was on the basketball team, with dirty blonde hair, blue eyes and a smile that would make even the Grinch melt like butter. Was he a jock? Yes. Was he a jerk about it? Not at all. He was kind and understanding. And a hero. When Marcus was being bullied for being a 'nerd', Peter rushed in to save him, shouting about being smart was a good thing.

Marcus fell hard.

He and Peter quickly became friends. Peter would wink at him whenever he came to watch him play a game or practice. Marcus tutored Peter in math so he could get his grades up in time for a game- an action that earne him a sweaty bear hug after the game. Peter let him borrow his hoodies, never griping when Marcus took forever to give them back. 

In the last month of his freshman year, Marcus got a cell phone. The first number he got, belonged to Peter.

On the last day of his freshman year, he got his first boyfriend.

Peter was a perfect gentleman, Prince Charming of the modern world. He held Marcus close, protective in a way that was endearing. They kissed in secret, since Marcus still hadn't told his mother about himself. When Marcus's mother went to work, Peter would walk the twelve blocks to his house and sneak in through the window, like some kind of 80's romance movie. Marcus was absolutely smitten.

He lost his virginity on his 16th birthday, Peter making love to him in his room after his mother had gotten called in to work. Peter's lips caressed every inch of him, raising him up until he was high enough to fly.

* * *

Marcus came out to his mother a week after his graduation. After two years of Peter pleading with him, begging him to spill the beans because he wanted to be able to show his affection in public like a good boyfriend should, Marcus gave in.

His mother was furious. Having been raised in a Christian household, she believed that homosexuality was wrong, and in a rage, she threw her son out screaming for him to never come back unless he learned to change.

* * *

Marcus had his first taste of blood when he and Peter were cooking dinner. The two of them had been living together for two months, and evn though it was dumb, they insisted on celebrating such a milestone by cooking dinner. Peter was busy chopping carrots while laughing at a joke Marcus had made when it happened. The knif cut into his skin, unleashing a heady scent that left Marcus in a daze. When he awoke from it, Peter was on the floor of the kitchen, staring at his boyfriend in fear.

Two days later, Marcus was single and homeless.

The first person he went to was his mother, who despite his desperation, refused him. He lost control, so angry and heartbroken that he lost control. When he woke up, his mother's lifeless body was lying under him, pale and cold.

Marcus had never run so fast in his life.

He was kidnapped a year later, after being alone and sad, with a craving for blood that had him killing animals- and once, his boss in a moment of weakness. He wasn't afraid at all. In fact, for the first time in a long time, he was kind of happy.

 

 

 


	18. Resistance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ask Nico any question, and he's sure he can answer it.
> 
> What's one plus two? Three of course.
> 
> How many continents are there? Seven, duh. 
> 
> He's spent most of his life gaining and retaining information. Whether it be from television or a conversation or even from a simple textbook, he's gained a lot of knowledge. He's a smart kid even though he rarely shows it- easier to lower expectations and then surprise the people with his greatness. He has a good memory, so that definitely helps a bit and he's always been able to provide an answer for someone in some shape or form.
> 
> But ask him about Marcus Shaw, and he's speechless.

Ask Nico any question, and he's sure he can answer it.

What's one plus two? Three of course.

How many continents are there? Seven, duh. 

He's spent most of his life gaining and retaining information. Whether it be from television or a conversation or even from a simple textbook, he's gained a lot of knowledge. He's a smart kid even though he rarely shows it- easier to lower expectations and then surprise the people with his greatness. He has a good memory, so that definitely helps a bit and he's always been able to provide an answer for someone in some shape or form.

But ask him about Marcus Shaw, and he's speechless.

Nico doesn't really know what to think about the guy. After about a week locked up in chains together, (at least, he thinks its been a week; there isn't much light except for the lamp in the corner and Nico been counting by starting a new day when he falls asleep) he and Marcus end up talking more. At first, it just casual banter, background noise in Nico's mind as he attempts to think of ways to escape this dungeon and get back to Percy. But after a while, it becomes obvious that doing so is going to be nearly impossible. The chains are too strong, even for him, with his newly found vampiric super strength. Even if he could break free of the chains, he's probably too weak to go very far, his legs feel numb from all the time he's spent sitting on them. He doesn't know where he is or how to get home. And he was unconscious when he was brought here. For all he knows, he could be at some remote place in the middle of the Australian outback.

So he gives up, for now. Instead of exhausting himself thinking of ways to get out of here that probably won't work- and still might run the danger of getting him killed- he uses his newly found freetime to get to know Marcus. He learns that Marcus is about 19 and a half, and he was born in a small city near Youngstown Ohio, named Warren. He's gay and he dated a football player until he was 18, when he lost control for some reason (Marcus refused to elaborate) and was kicked out. He went back to his mother, only for him to turn him away for being gay. ("Man, what a bitch." Nico had scoffed, to which Marcus replied with, "Hey. That's still my mom dude.") He ended up alone, hitching rides and walking until he found a place where he could get back on his feet. It was then, just as he was settling into his new apartment, that he was brought here.

Nico, in return, told Marcus about himself. Told him about Persephone and his dad and Hazel. About school and being on the soccer team. ("Please tell me you didn't pick on anyone like all the other jocks." Marcus had asked pitifully.) He told him about Percy- not about him being a vampire, because duh. He talked about his mom and Bianca. The whole five yards.

When they weren't telling their life stories, they were wondering why they were here.

That's exactly what they were doing when Kronos walked in.

"Maybe we owe him money." Marcus suggested.

"How would I owe him money?" Nico asked. "I'm barely 17 and I'm always broke."

"Maybe I owe him money." Marcus mused, to which Nico shook his head. "Nah. That wouldn't explain why I'm here. Besides he said something about enslaving the human race didn't he?"

With the help of the candle, Nico was able to see Marcus nod his head. "Yeah. He said humans, as if he wasn't one. Maybe he's an alien? From Mars, not Canada."

"Why would ET stay on Earth for so long? He said he'd fought in most of the wars that humans had had. I doubt an alien would be willing to put up with that."

"Mutant maybe? Could be kind of like that whole Wolverine deal. Guy can't die, fights in wars. Decides humans keep fucking up, and boom, there you have it." Marcus said.

"I'm pretty sure I speak for the both of us when I say that we're not mutants. He wouldn't need us." Nico says, purposely not mentioning the fact that he may not be a mutant, but he's not completely human. 

Silence stretches between the two of them, Nico thinking about what could possibly be going on here. Marcus was right. Kronos had said 'humans', as if he weren't. Then, it clicked. Maybe he wasn't human at all. And if Nico's intuition was correct, Kronos was a vampire. 

No doubt this has something to do with Percy. Ever since Nico met him, he's been getting in more trouble. Not that he wasn't getting in trouble before, but it'd never been life threatening until he met Percy. He'd been chased by vampires and threatened by them. Now, he was being held captive by a man who probably was one. Not to mention the fact that the man in question was hellbent on enslaving the human race because he deemed them incompetent. 

"Do you think we'll ever get out of here?" Marcus asks, chasing away Nico's thoughts. Nico thinks about that for a while and considers the possibility. Their situation looks pretty grim. Bound in chains that won't budge. Waiting to die, while their families wonder where they are and if they're safe. He really does try to make it seem like they might get out sometime soon. He's seen it happen in movies. The hero gets trapped by the villain, and barely escapes to save the world. There are some bruises and scratches and a few deaths, but in the end, the world is saved and all is right. Unfortunately, this isn't a movie, and neither one of them can really be considered as a hero. The world is at stake and there's nothing either of them can do about it. In the movies, the good guy's friend rescues them from the clutches of the villan. But the one person who could save him has no clue where he is. No one is coming for them.

"No. I don't think we are." He says, voice sounding way too old to be his age.

He thinks he sees Marcus nod, before he hears his voice, shaky and unclear. "I told you about what happened between my boyfriend and I, right?" Nico nods vigorously so Marcus can see it. He remembers Marcus saying something about a boyfriend.

"Did I tell you why?"

At that, Nico shakes his head, gesturing with one of his shackled hands for Marcus to tell him. Marcus takes a shaky breath, in and out, before he begins. "We'd been dating for a while. About two years I think, and when my mom kicked me out because I was gay, we rented an apartment together. He got a job at a mechanic shop and I started taking courses at the local community college." Nico notices the wistful edge that Marcus's voice has to it, and imagines that his face is full of sadness. "We were celebrating our two year anniversary. Peter had the great idea to make dinner. We were making stir fry. He loves stir fry. I was cookimg the shrimp and he was chopping the peppers. His knife was sharp and hes never been careful, always getting himself hurt. He cut his finger and I smelled it and-" Another deep breath, as if Marcus is trying to remember the smell. "- and I lost it. It was so sweet, like honey or mectar and I couldn't help myself. I blacked out. When I woke up, I was latched onto him like a parasite. My mouth was full of blood and he was staring at !e like I'd lost my mind. He told me to go to our bedroom and calm down while he bandaged himself. When he came in, he said he wasn't angry, just scared. Said he needed some time to himself. I never heard from him again. A while after that, I started wondering what the hell made me attack him like that, so looked up my symptoms. Lately I'd been having these weird feelings, getting extremely hungry whenever I was near a crowd of people. I started hearing pulses, from like a yard away, when I was nowhere near a person. I googled everything. But all I got was a bunch of vampire folklore, which is ridiculous because I'm not a vampire."

"That's right." A voice said from outside the cell, making Nico and Marcus flinch. Kronos stood just outside the cell, leaning against the wall. "You aren't a vampire. At least not completley anyway."

"What do you mean?" Marcus asked, while Nico's stomach dropped. Kronos knew what he was.

Kronos shrugged. "Well, that's why you're here. The both of you, and all the others. Hybrids. Half mortal, half immortal. Half bloods if you will. One of each of your parents was a vampire."

"Impossible." Marcus says, at the same time that Nico friend because Kronos had said that there were more people like them, who were here and he didn't know what to make of that.

"Oh no, its very possible." Kronos says, and even though Nico can't see him smirking, he can hear it in his voice. "It's rare, as most humans don't last long enough to have a child with a vampire. But its very possible. For a example, did you know your father?"

"No." Marcus says. " My mom told me that he died of cancer before I was born. I never even knew his name."

"I did." Kronos said. "He was a good friend of mine, both on the battlefield and in regular life. His name was Geoffrey Shaw. He is however, very much alive. In fact, he has chosen to side with me in this debate. Would you like to see him?"

Nico knew Marcus wanted to say no. He wanted to yell at him to make the right choice, to be strong and aggressive. But he also knew that if it were him, he wouldn't be able to resist. Marcus hadn't seen his father, ever. Nico knew how he must've been feeling now that he had a chance to know. Anxious, excited, scared. Nico knew that if Kronos had offered him a chance to see his mother, he would taken it no problem.

So imagine his surprise when Marcus does the exact opposite.

"No." He says, shocking Kronos is the way he flinches is any indication. "If the man you want me to see is really my father, I don't want a thing to do with him. He's been alive this entire time and hasn't even made an effort to see me. That's eighteen years that he left me alone. I think he can manage to go a little longer without seeing me. My answer is no." 

Kronos growls, obviously unsure how to deal with Marcus's resilience. "Fine! The both of you will die without ever seeing your loved ones again!" Then, he's gone, pounding out if the room like a child throwing a tantrum. The silence creeps into the room quickly, but not fast enough to make Nico feel uncomfortable when he snorts into laughter.

"That...was freaking awesome."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry you guys don't get to meet Marcus's daddy. But I couldn't think of a good description for him and after two days of thinking about it and coming up with nothing, I said fuck it and gave up. Next chapter will be Percy, I hope.


	19. Dreaming of You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Depression, Annabeth calls it.
> 
> He's not depressed. Depression is a response to a bad situation. But nothing bad has technically happened yet. Nico may be imprisoned by a madman but he's not dead yet. He can't be. He's a fighter. Percy's not depressed. He's simply preparing himself to be depressed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. But with Thanksgiving coming up, writing chapters has been a bit hard. But I've had a few hours off from cooking food and entertaining small children so you guys get a chapter. And one more thing...

You know that feeling you get when you walk into class and your best friend isn't there? The way you wonder where they are, what they're doing and why they left you to deal with the idiots of your school all by yourself? How on the outside you appear calm but on the inside you're wondering if they're okay. And when they come back the next day, you follow them like a lost puppy because you missed them and now they're back so you plan to take advantage of every second.

You have?

Okay. 

Now imagine that feeling, but a thousand times stronger and you have some idea what Percy's going through.

Lately, his mood's been swinging back and forth between helpless and enraged. One second he's thinking of Nico and his smile and the way his eyes light up when he's happy and Percy feels lovesick, like a teenaged girl who has a crush on a guy. On those days, he walks around aimlessly, a sort of dopey smile on his face, as if he's been drugged. But then, his mind flashes to Kronos, the man who took what belonged to him and he's pissed. He stomps aroung, inadvertently slamming doors and other assorted furniture. (He broke a chair a few days ago.) He growls at anyone who tries to talk to him and he fills any room he enters with a sort of bad 'stay the hell away from me or I'll cut in two' vibe. 

Depression, Annabeth calls it.

He's not depressed. Depression is a response to a bad situation. But nothing bad has technically happened yet. Nico may be imprisoned by a madman but he's not dead yet. He can't be. He's a fighter. Percy's not depressed. He's simply preparing himself to be depressed. 

Chiron tells him to rest, to take a load off and try to relax while they figure this out. But Percy can't relax. Not when he's anxious, tired, grouchy, lonely, lovesick, straight up sick, and pissed all at the same time.

Not to mention hungry. He hasn't had any blood in a while, and his powers are starting to wane. He's lost his ability to manipulate water, and he can't run as fast as he used to. His stomach growls twenty four seven and now, not even eating a sandwich will make it stop. He's stopped going out in public because the smell is downright disgusting, enough to make him puke if he actually had something in his stomach to throw up. His head is almost always swimming and he doesn't even talk much anymore.

His friends pity him. 

Annabeth doesn't gripe when Percy spends all day surrounded by blankets and pillows in the middle of the game room playing video games.  In fact, she bans anyone else from using it until Percy gets it together. Leo doesn't crack jokes when he's around, instead he sends Percy these looks of pure sadness. Jason tries to cheer him up from time to time- he'll come in and play Call of Duty with him sometimes- but with a festival happening, its hard to get away from his responsibilities. Thalia hangs out with him too, at least until someone from her coven calls her back and she remembers that she's not allowed to be around men by herself. The Hunter's coven has always been strict about that rule. Even Clarisse has stopped teasing him, patting him on the shoulder in sympathy when she sees him because she's never been good at feelings. Piper brings him food from the banquet hall, cookies and other sweet things that he can't eat because it doesn't help and the snacks kind of remind him of Nico.

Then again, everything reminds him of Nico.

It's bad enough that he's lonely and hungry, with more mood swings than a pregnant woman. But he has nightmares too. Terrible nightmares. They don't come often, because he doesn't sleep all that much anymore, but when they do come, they're horrible. Beautifully torturous in the worst way.

They usually start off with Nico standing in a room. He isn't wearing a single article of clothing and even though Percy wants to look, to see Nico in his naked glory, he's focused on the smile Nico is giving him. His lips curl up beautifully, showing just a hint of teeth with his tongue poking out a bit. His face is flushed, dotted with splashes of pink as if a small child decided to do graffiti on his cheeks with a Crayola crayon. His eyes shine like constellations and for a moment, Percy's tempted to get lost in them. But then Nico is moving, walking towards him slowly, feet confident in a way that they never were before, as if hes possesed with some new power of balance. Then Percy notices it. Nico is glowing, like literally glowing. His body is shining from the inside out, like the sun took a vacation in his heart and decided to stay. He looks godly, etheral, divine. 

"Hi Percy." He says, still smiling, eyes full of trust like they always are, because as much as Nico tries to be indifferent, his eyes convey all his emotions like a picture book. He's sitting in Percy's lap now, still naked and undoubtedly teasing. "How are you?"

"I miss you." Percy says, meaning it fully and Nico nods.

"I know. I miss you too. But none if this would have happened if you hadn't abandoned me."

The room around them turns from fluorescent white to pitch black. The only light is coming from Nico himself, but Percy wishes there was no light at all because this isn't Nico at all. Nico doesn't smirk like that, with his mouth curved up into a cruel but sweet smile. Nico's eyes aren't red like that, the color of fresh blood. His hair isn't that wild, feral. His lips have never been covered in blood either, but they are now. His face is sunken in, as is he's deathly sick and his teeth are too sharp. He looks haunted.

Percy stutters as Nico wraps his arms around Percy's neck. "I- I didn't abandon you."

"You left me alone. They took me because you weren't there." That isn't Nico's voice. It's too distorted, too low and scratchy. 

" You said you didn't want me to protect you." Percy argues, feeling Nico's arms slip forward so now its just his hands are around Percy's neck.

"But you knew. You knew what would happen if you left me alone and you left anyway." Nico's fingernails dig into his skin.

"N- no. I swear I didn't. If I'd known they were- you were going to be..." There's no way to tell him that he didn't know. That he never could have guessed that Kronos would come for him. Sure, he'd always suspected Luke of being untrustworthy, but he never could have even...he can't believe he didn't see it coming. "I'm sorry."

Nico smiles even sweeter, though Percy can see right through it. He can see the seething hatred that rests in Nico's eyes, the burning anger they hold. "Yes." He says, voice morphing deeper, so it sounds even more detached and deformed than before. "You are sorry." In an instant, the smile is gone, changing to a growl, his eyes burning red and his fingers digging even harder into Percy's skin. He stands even closer now, hands closing around Percy's throat. "You are a sorry excuse for an immortal, and an even bigger useless imbecile of a boyfriend. You could be out there saving me, redeeming yourself. But what do you do? You lay around like a slob waiting for me to die." 

He's being lifted into the air now, Nico's hands still locked on Percy's throat, blocking his air supply. Percy knows he doesn't need air, but the fact that Nico's trying to stop him from getting something that any normal person would need to live, strikes something in him. Realization.

Nico is trying to kill him.

"No." Percy chokes, trying to fight the strong hands, bit its useless. He's weak now and somehow Nico's stronger than he is. "I- can't."

"Can't what?" Nico sneers. "Can't breathe? Can't speak or think? Because in a little bit, I'll probably be the same. Unbreathing, unfeeling, nothing. I'll be dead, and its all your fault."

Nico lets his hands slip, so he's holding Percy by his face, and the last thing he sees is Nico's eyes, full of anger and resentment, before Nico's hands jerk to the right, snapping Percy's neck and everything goes black.

 

Percy jolts awake to the sound of laughter, head spinning. His hands instantly fly to his throat, because it feels like Nico's still holding him there, blocking his air supply with a sneer. His cheeks are kind of sticky and his throat burns and his eyes are throbbing with a dull ache so he can only guess that he's been crying. He runs at his eyes with the heels of his palms, glancing around him to see that he conked out in the game room. Again. All around him are blankets and assorted video game boxes complete with a few plates from the other times Piper had attempted to feed him to no avail. He can hear loud, drunk laughter coming from down the hall, in the direction of the hall where the guests are celebrating the festival and Percy inwardly cringes. He can smell the blood of humans, pungent and disgusting, like a garbage dump, nothing like Nico's blood...

No. Thinking about Nico will only make him think about other things. And the last thing he needs is to break another chair. But the scent is still unbearable, so he chooses to hold his breath while he makes an attempt to clean the game room. He's halfway through doing so when the door opens, sending in a fresh wave of blood stank.

"Hey." Says a familiar voice and Percy flinches, whipping around with a big- if a bit droopy- smile.

"Beckendorf!" He says, rushing forward to greet his old friend only to trip on one of the blankets and fall flat on his face. He picks himself up and shakes Beckendorf's hand. "It's good to see you."

"You too." Beckendorf says, eyes quickly taking in the state of the room; half clean and half littered with trash. "You're doing...well. What's wrong?"

Percy freezes, mind instantly racing through everything that's happened. Beckendorf takes one look at him and sighs, throwing big arms around him, and hugging him tightly. "I'm sorry. I know how you feel. It hurts, I understand."

Oh right. That's how he met Beckendorf.

He'd been roaming around the country, after an unusually large and complex fight with Annabeth, and he'd ended up in Texas. He'd found Beckendorf trying to kill himself after losing his mate, Silena. Beckendorf was in the process of trying to starve himself when Percy had come across him.

"Man, you look terrible." He'd said, plopping down next to Beckendorf on the curb of a street, watching the cars stream by as traffic hour came to an end. "How long has it been since you've eaten?"

Beckendorf had given him a pitiful look. "I don't want to eat. I just wanna sit here and grieve."

Percy had stared at him for a few moments before his face softened. "You lost your mate." Beckdorf nodded and Percy sighed. "Look, I know it hurts. A lot. And as I've never actually had a bond before, I can't imagine how much pain you're going through, physically and emotionally. But you have to have a coven, someone who cares, someone who can help you through this."

Beckendorf shook his head. "Not a one. I've been flying solo for about thirty years."

"Well I know a place real close where you can start over. The coven leader's a good guy, but I'm gonna warn you, he's a bit crazy. And by crazy, I mean that he's jumpier than a chipmunk on energy drinks and he's a pyromanic. But as crazy as he is, he's a great person." 

And that's how Beckendorf had ended up in Leo's coven. Percy had saved him from an eternity full of grief and pain after losing the one thing he valued most. He found it kind of painfully ironic that their positions were switched. Now he was the lovesick, grieving one who was wasting away while Beckendorf was the one trying to save him.

Percy sniffles, eyes burning again, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to cry. He'd cried so much by now that it was kind of impossible to do so anymore. "I'm fine." He lies. Beckendorf sees right through it.

"You're worse off than I am. It smells like pee, despair and stale Doritos in here. You look like a zombie. How long have you been in here?"

"A few hours..." Percy says.

Beckendorf raises an eyebrow.

"I lost track but its been a while."

Beckendorf sniffs at him again. "Obviously. Seriously, can you even smell yourself?"

"No." Percy says, because to be honest he hasn't really smelled anything but human blood in about two days and his nose has had it. "All I can smell is..." He gestures out to the hall where the sounds of drunken laughter and the scent of blood pours in from the door. Beckendorf nods sympathetically.

"Yeah I had to get away from it too. Poor humans. They have no clue what's going to happen to them. It's sick, the whole thing. Bingeing on human blood, killing dozens of innocent people to celebrate one homicidal maniac. Its like worshipping a serial killer." Beckendorf's face contorts into a mask of anger, one Percy hasn't seen him wear in a long while because he's always a rather happy guy. But Beckendorf knew the pain of being in the festival. He'd been a victim himself. Silena had saved him from death by changing him into an immortal, and in return, he'd become her mate. But the council found out quickly and Silena was killed, as saving a human who was supposed to die in the festival was extremely illegal.

Beckendorf knows how he feels, in a way. He's still connected to Silena, and the scent of humans is still intolerable to him. He found a way around the whole blood thing though,  choosing to drink animal blood instead of human so the taste isn't as bad. Its an option that Percy would consider. But doing so would mean believing that Nico is dead, which he refuses to do.

"Yeah.." Percy says, letting the word fade out because he doesn't know what to say now.

Beckendorf looks at him, the way Leo looks at a blueprint, as if he's analyzing the best way to make him work right again. He appears to be about to say something, but he doesn't have the chance because the door to the game room is being slammed open by a little vampire boy. He's short and kind of chubby, and if Percy remembers correctly, his name is Rodney. He looks scared out of his mind, like a deer caught in the headlights, eyes immediately finding Percy. For a split second- quite literally, like a sixteenth of a second- the boy looks around at the state of the room, and Percy has half a mind to get at him for it. But then the boy is speaking and Percy decides to forgive him.

"We have a problem."

* * *

When Rodney- because yes, that is his name, as Percy had found out- had said that they had a problem, Percy expected the worst.

It was kind of an automatic response to the word by now. To most people, 'problem' meant something small, menial. Like maybe your car alarm is going off or your kid is biting another kid at daycare. The little things. 

But for Percy it's usually implying something more dangerous. Like vampires. Or other things in that category. And it usually involves blood. Lots and lots of blood.

So yeah, call him a pessimist if you want but when he hears the word problem, he assumes the worst.

This, is worse than the worst.

Hades di Angelo stands at his door, looking pissed. And when Percy says pissed, he means pissed. Like a raging bull about to charge.

Not that he doesn't have a good reason to be. Its raining- straight up pouring- and Hades is drenched, his hair splattered to his forehead with raindrops drippingdown his face and coat. Oh, and there's the fact that his son has been missing for a few days. Apparently parents get pretty bent out of shape about that sort of thing. (Percy hasn't actually had real parents for a while so he really wouldn't know. He has...mentors.)

"Where. Is my son?" He grinds out, eyes narrowing as soon as he catches sight of Percy, as if he knew all along that Percy was no good.

Percy does what comes best to him. He plays  dumb. "I have no clue sir. Shouldn't he be at your house?"

Hades growls at him, a dark and feral sound that Percy would compare to an angry werewolf. (He would know.) "He hasn't been home for a while, and when I asked Hazel, she said he was here."

From behind her father, Hazel Levesque peeks her head out meekly,  eyes fullof apology. As if she's trying to give Percy a mental message. Percy gets it quickly. _I tried but there's only so much I can do._ Percy instantly forgives her. Not her fault her dad's a relentless beast.

"He's not here sir." Percy says, adding the 'sir' in there because Hades looks like he's about to chop him in half and he'd rather not die today. "He hasn't been here for a while. Maybe he went to another friend's house without telling you?"

"You'd better hope so boy." Hades says ominously, eyes narrowing even more. "Because if I find out that you were lying to me-"

 Percy doesn't know what makes him do it. Maybe its just a way to release stress, maybe the depressing thoughts are beginning to get to him. Or maybe he's just as crazy as Annabeth had always called him. But for some reason,  the idea that this man- this very mortal man- could possibly be making threats towards him, makes him laugh. So he does.

"What?" He chuckles. "What would you do sir? Hurt me? Its not like you can."

"What did you just say to me?" Hades says, seconds away from choking the boy in front of him.

"I said, you can't hurt me sir. It's physically impossible for you to do so. You simply aren't strong enough." Percy can see Beckendorf in his peripheral, shaking his head vigorously and mouthing  _stop_ repeatedly. Percy doesn't listen. 

"Where are your parents?" Hades asks, trying to push past Percy to get inside the house. "I need to tell them how disrespectful their son is."

Beckendorf is really going at it now, letting go of his 'human' speed to wave his hands frantically. "Stop. Shut up." He hisses at a volume that only Percy can hear.

"They're dead." Percy says simply, because nothing beats the way Hades freezes. "Both of them. They've been dead for a while actually. About eighty years to be exact."

"W- what?" Hades asks, eyebrows raised in concern, as if he's worried fkr Percy's mental health. (He wouldn't be the first.) 

"I'm immortal sir." Percy laughs now because the look on Hades's face is purely enjoyable. He looks half confused, as if he thinks he's being tricked but he's not quite sure. "I've been this age for about eighty years."

"Percy, what the hell?" Beckendorf says out loud now, so everyone can hear him. "Why would you tell him that?"

"You've been...what?" Hades says, not paying attention to Beckendorf at all. "What?"

"I'm a vampire." Percy says, letting his fangs slip out and his eyes morph into their natural red state to be his proof.

A few things happen in the next few seconds that follow. Beckendorf slaps his forehead with his palm. Hades and Hazel catch his fangs and his eyes and faint on the spot. And Percy hears Annabeth scream his name in fury.

Ah, hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Charles Beckendorf is in the buildiing!
> 
> Had to get that out.   
> Anyway, I feel super terrible right now. I made baby Percy sad and depressed. The guilt is real, ughh. This will get better, I promise...I hope.S


End file.
